MIDDLE EAST CRUISE MEMORIES

My most memorable holiday abroad was the Middle Eastern Cruise we did in 1973. We left a cold wintry England, the first week of December and flew out on a Tri-star jet to the sunny climes of Greece. I mention the fact that the plane we took was a Tri-star, because at that time it was one of the newest jets coming into operation. Until then most planes had been slim lined in body with only a few seats across in the passenger section. This was only the second time I had ever flown, so it was an experience in itself for me, but the fact that we were also some of the first European passengers to fly in the new jet also added extra excitement for me. My ticket showed I had a window seat so I was pleased about that, mum was next to me and dad had the aisle seat. I took the opportunity to look all round the passenger section and was amazed to see the seats in the centre section of the plane numbered four across which made the total width ten seat across. Now though I think there could be larger jets around with maybe twelve seats across, I am not too sure. Anyway, wide bodied aircraft are nothing new these days, but back then they were something else again to someone who was just turning twenty-two. I would be celebrating my birthday while away.

We flew out to Athens airport in Greece and then boarded coaches which took us to Piraeus, the city's famous harbour. The ship we boarded was enornous and white but it did have a blue funnel which had the shipping line insignia on its sides. We settled into our three berth cabin and then went to find our way about, we wanted to find the easiest route to the restuarant of course, I suppse that goes without saying. Why come on a cruise if you can not sample some of the foreign dishes served on board? We also discovered the lounges and bars which would be open when at sea.

There was full day at sea the next day so everyone was at liberty to please themselves what they did. After breakfast we took a stroll on deck and sat for a time, sunning ourselves, though the sea breeze kept things cool. Lunch time came and went and while dad had a snooze in the cabin mum and I took it upon ourselves to do a little more exploring before going out on deck again. Soon it was time for dinner and we all changed for the evening meal and drinks in one of the lounges afterwards until bedtime.

The next day meant an early rise to go to breakfast and then up on deck for our arrival in Crete. I would have liked to visit the little fishing village of Aghios Nikolaos which I had previously seen in the tv drama series of "The Lotus Eaters". It looked so picturesque and attractive on tv, the reason why I would have liked to see it for real but none of the ship's excursions ran there and neither my parents nor I knew any Greek to find our way around so I had to forgo that experience. Just seeing the harbour was not the most pleasant of experiences and I, for one, was glad when the ship set sailed and we headed towards Egypt!

 
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One of the many countries bordering the Suez Canal, Egypt has been World renowned since the time of Moses when he asked the then Pharoah to release the Jews from their bondage in that country. Egypt is steeped in history, everywhere you look you can see it and out of city and town environs, life has not changed much in centuries. The ship was due to lie over here for two days which gave a fair amount of time for sight seeing so we prebooked two excursions here. The first was for a half day visiting Alexandria and the Catacombs. The tour included a stop at a column with two prone sphinxes guarding it and mum wanted to be photoed here so we obliged her. Then a little way along the coast we were taken to ex-King Farouk's palace to have a good look round. The grounds were sumptuous with their verdant green lawns and there was a small salmon coloured bridge adjoining the mainland to a tiny island where, we were told, the King's Harem used to reside. I must say they must have had a lot of peace and quiet there when they were not fulfilling their duties of course. After that we were taken into the large entrance hall of the Palace and my mouth dropped open in amazement. We walked in on while marble floors, the walls were all of marble, shining, gleeming white. Even the majestic staircase which led to the upper levels was completely made of marble, even the handrails or balustrade, to give it its proper name. It was more than just simply impressive I felt as i gazed around. Unforturnately it was then time to leave and return to the city for a quick tour of the Catacombs, which being underground, were a complete let down in every sense of the word after what we had already seen, ha ha ha! Catafalques and tombs everywhere we looked, who could really be interested in all this, I remember thinking at the time and once more was pleased to get back to the ship, this time for lunch.

It was another another early rise the next day, to make sure we had breakfast before going on that day's excursion. Lunch was included in the price of the tour but as we weren't sure what we would be getting, we decided to fill up before hand. A lot of walking would be entailed today so it was just as well we had the energy. After boarding a coach, it started off on its long journey once it was full. Heading out into the traffic and out of town we settled back into our seat, watching the world go by.

The itinerary took us along the shoreline of the Nile for quite some time and then in across to Cairo our destination. Watching life on the river, we could see the square sail rigged boats that fishermen have been using since time immemorial, certainly nothing had changed there. Turning inland, the scenery changed from one of a verdant countryside to one covered with sand and rock. We entered over-crowded Cairo and continued on through the city to a lovely hotel not far from the Pyramids and Sphinx of Gizeh; they were actually visible from the hotel grounds. At least the Pyramids were. We sat outside in the hotel grounds to have lunch. The tables were covered with red and white checkered tablecloths and the usual place settings were already for us. I can not recall now the exact details of the menu but I do know there was ice-cold beer to drink with the meal because we have a photo of dad and myself sitting at the table after the meal was over, with small empty bottles of beer in front of us. When we were ready it was back to the coach for the final leg up to the Pyramids. When we got off there were men there with camels, ready to barter for fares for camel rides to the Pyramids up the dusty road. Some brave souls ventured the risk but my parents and I agreed we would walk it. Of course once there, there was plenty of picture taking and so forth going on. The fittest ones tried to climb up the rocks the monuments were made of, but I think they did not get far. Others ventured into a corridor in the largest of the Pyramids but when they came out they said it was a loss because there was quite literally nothing to see inside. The guide told us how the Sphinx lost its nose which was caused by Napoleon having one of his canon's shoot at it when he was in a rage one time, during his desert campaign. I do believe though that the nose has since be rebuilt since our visit there all those years back now. It was back to the coach then where we were greeted by hawkers selling trays of souvenirs. One of them stopped us and I saw a small bust of Queen Nefertiri I would have liked but we had more or less got rid of all our Egyptian money by then and he was asking too much for it anyway. He could see my interest in it and would not let us alone, he started out asking three Egyptian pounds which at the time was worth a lot more than three of ours. Dad said no and we started to walk off. He then reduced the price to two then one. Mum and I were in the coach by then and mum told me not to worry, dad would get the item at a lower price. When he finally came aboard with the bust, he said,

"I eventually got him down to one of our pounds. I pleaded innocent and said I only had one English pound left on me right now. He shrugged and resigned himself to agree to that price. I guess he wasn't too pleased at losing his profit this time but then they do tend to overprice their wares especially for tourists so I expect he isn't too much out of pocket. Anyway, we got it Pam, here." I thanked him. With everybody back onboard we headed towards Cairo again where a couple of stops were made. We ended up being so tired that we were only too grateful to get back aboard our floating hotel in time to change for a late dinner once the ship had left Alexandria.

Our visit was not all full of interesting and wonderful experiences though. The truce from the six day war was teetering on tenterhooks and while we were berthed in Egypt we heard explosions going off under and round the hull of the ship, which went on for the two days stay. It was particularly bothersome in the restaurant and in our cabin because they were both on the lower decks. On enquiry, we were told that frogmen were letting off detonations near the hull to keep away any possible enemy frogmen from planting bombs on the hull. It was purely for the safety of the ship we were guaranteed yet all the same it was daunting to know that we could be a target for someone. We also had the experience of having armed guards ride with us on tour coaches as well which did not instil a sense of security believe you me.

There was a day at sea then a brief sojourn in the Lebanon where we did a morning coach trip along the shore line. We saw how similar the city we were in, was to others throughout the World with the usual skyscrapers and so on. Beirut though, has seen a lot of fighting and now most of it is in ruins. I don't think there was much to see there as there was only one coach tour planned and we went on it.

The next morning, saw our arrival in Haifa, Israel. Both mum and I were looking forward to the full day's excursion to Jerusalem and though he did not say at the time I think dad did too, a little. It was a seven thirty breakfast this morning and as the coaches would be leaving in the next hour, there was no time for a full British one. A cup of coffee with a buttered roll and jam had to make do most people that day. I don't think there were many passengers remaining aboard that day, certainly not judging by the numbers of coaches that were queued up on the quay along the ship's side. There was the tour to Jerusalem of course but there were also several other half day trips planned, visiting places a lot nearer by. The three of us had booked for Jerusalem of course and we were full of anticipation as the coaches set off. The drive there would take a couple of hours at least so we looked out at the passing scenery, noticing there were communes along the way where eveyone pitched in with the chores to help each other out. It was good though after about two and a half hours of this the coach slowed down. The guide, Jewish through and through, though she had not been born in Israel she later informed on the homeward journey, pointed out sites of interest along the way. Then it became overcast and the atmosphere changed, growing dreary and even grey in some areas. We were now on the road leading up to Jerusalem she informed us. She pointed to the outline of a city perched, on what looked like a hill. That was our destination she told us. The scene was awfully grey and depressing and maybe that is what brought tears to our eyes as we watched. I would like to think though that it was the sense of awe and wonderment that we felt at being on the road which Our Dear Lord had walked along during his time on this planet: I felt really priveleged by the fact that we were travelling along in His footsteps, going to Jerusalem. A quick halt in the city while the guide gave us the itinerary from here on. We would not be seeing any of the city just yet but going on to Bethlehem for a visit to the Church of Nativity where we would see the place where Jesus was born, a big silver star in a cave like place marking the exact spot of the birth. Then it would be back to Jerusalem, in the newer part where we would have lunch before being taken into the old city and walking part of the way along the Via Dolorosa, the Way of the Cross.

I just can not describe my feelings of what I saw that day, the interior of the Church of Nativity was beyond beauty. We were allowed in to the Catholic Chapel but not the other two as they were reserved for other religions for whom this place was special too. To see the place of Our Lord's Birth, we had to climb down some stone steps and here again, no words can describe what I felt. Back to the coaches once again and we returned to Jerusalem, passing the Fields of the Shepherds and the Wilderness as we did so. Lunch over with and we were rushed round the Old City. Time was drawing on and the guide wanted to fit in as much as she possibly could. We walked along part of the Via Dolorosa that was in the Christian Quarter, so we could not see the entire Stations of the Cross unfortunately. It was into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre then and shown the Rock that held the Cross upright. Each in turn put their hand into the hole in the top of the altar so we could feel it. Once again overpowering emotions welled up inside. We saw where the body of Christ was taken down and laid before being taken to be buried. Oh it was all so overpowering and just thinking about it now brings back upsetting memories so I will leave the Church here and just say that we were rushed along to the Temple of the Dome of the Rock so that we could visit it also but because there were so many elderly disabled people in the party which slowed the group down, we got there around four p.m just after the gates to the compound had been closed for the day. I was dreadfully disappointed at not being able to see that, but we did get to see the Wailing Wall on our way back to the coaches. It was a marvellous day but it wasn't over yet, more was to come. The guide introduced herself and the driver properly and they told us a little about their ethnic backgrounds, the driver being a Russian Jew apparently who had striven hard to reach Israel with his family. She then taught us a Jewish song in Hebrew, explaining the words to us as we went along. She said as we were coming up to Christmas, it being about twelve days away still, would we like to sing Christmas carols and a cheer went up, so we did for a time until one by one, people dropped off for a nap until they reached the ship. It was dark when we drove along the coast road, returning another way. It had been an exhilerating and exciting day but the guide and driver had a surprise in store for us still. They took us to the summit of Mt. Carmel where they stopped the coach and told us to look to our left. The sight which greeted us was one not to be missed. Spread out like a blanket of jewelled lights, way below us a little in the distance was the city of Haifa. In fact the lights went right round the bay making the whole scene look like something out of a fairytale perhaps. We were told that if we looked carefully we would also be able to see the white lights which illuminated the cruise ship and gave away its whereabouts. Indeed this had been an incredible day and this was just the icing on the cake so to speak. We all returned to the warmth of the coach after getting out for a better look, and I settled in my seat, put my head back and just felt compeletely at peace with the World. Once back at the quayside, the guide wished each of us a safe journey and said to all that she wished we would be able to return to see more of her country again some time, she was such a lovely person, I really felt she truly meant every word. It was gone mid-night when the ship finally upped anchor to leave for its next port of call which ought to have been the Island of Rhodes. We were still up as the ship left but were certainly getting ready for bed.

Rhodes was basically a by pass as the weather had become too rough to try and tie up there, so another of the places I would have liked to see went by the board and worse was to come as we were supposed to have berthed at Kusadasi in order to visit Ephesus in Turkey. They tried three times I believe to tie up alongside but due to the rough sea and inclement weather conditions they continued on to Istanbul and stayed over night there where they were supposed to have stayed for a day only. With that change in the ship's itinerary it also meant that a visit to one of Greece's islands would be cancelled as well which also disappointed me as it would have been a really picturesque one. Still we did get to see the parts of Istanbul that we had booked to see so we couldn't really complain and besides we had already seen what the highlight of the cruise was for us, so it did not matter that we found Istanbul to be cold, grey, dirty and overcast. We went into the Blue Mosque which was quite impressive and also the Topkapi Palace to see the collection of the Sultan's Treasury stored in there. I really don't think the Crown Jewels of England can compare to what we saw in that Treasury that day and once again words alone can not do the precious gold, silver and other valuable items and ornaments justice. One needs to see them to believe them.

From there it was onto the Turkish Bazaar where I got two kaftans, a short one and a long black suede one ornamented with gold, silver and other glittery threads. It is so beautiful that I barely wore it to keep it in its original condition but also because it was too small for me even though it was the largest size available they said. Dad bought a Russian fur hat and mum ended up with some genuine Turkish Delight in different flavours and not the chocolate covered kind either. Well that about covers the entire cruise it only needed a return back to Greece for the flight home and that was the end of our wonderful holiday.