Athens to Athens

A city of legend, civilisation and enduring culture, Athens is a majestic and magical urban sprawl. Extraordinary elegance and grace combine with grit and graft in Greece's capital, where highways encase ruins from antiquity, and gleaming museums and galleries stand beside concrete sprayed with edgy street art. These contrasts enhance and elevate the wonders of this 2,500-year-old city, however, which can count notable contributions to philosophy, drama and democracy, among its global legacy. Piraeus' giant port and naval base welcome you to the edge of the Athens' urban area. From there it's a simple jaunt to the centre. The majestic ancient citadel of the Acropolis dominates an elevated platform and is a constant presence as you explore the city. The wonderful remains of the columned temple of the Parthenon - which date back to the 5th century BC - stand here, representing the pinnacle of classical architecture. The nearby Acropolis Museum adds context to your visit and frames the broad views from its giant glass windows. Or rise up Mount Lycabettus, to be rewarded with perhaps Athens' best panorama of the Acropolis sitting high over the city on its grand stage. See the marble horseshoe of the Old Olympic Stadium, where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896, for more of the city's enduring legacy. Elsewhere, golden beaches and temples stretch out along the coastline, should you wish to explore a little further afield. Coffee is an art form to the Greeks, and it's an unwritten rule that coffee time must never be rushed. So prepare to settle down for a couple of hours and lose yourself in a good chat. Feeling hungry - try traditional souvlaki made with sauces handed from generation to generation.

Nestled ideally between the gentle lapping waves of the Pagasetic Gulf and Mount Pelion, Volos is a Greek seaside town worth visiting. The town enjoys a near mythic status as being home of Jason and his Argonauts, and that, along with its reputation for being ‘Land of the Centaurs’ should go some way to illustrating the degree of ancient history to be found in Volos. The city was severely damaged in an earthquake in 1955 which regrettably means that much of the 19th-century architecture has been lost or damaged. A few traces do remain however, fine examples of neo-classical architecture that are hidden away around the town. If you want your history a little older than that, the superb archaeology museum will both surprise and delight you. Not only will you find objects from the Ancient Greek era but recent excavations have unearthed artefacts from the first Neolithic settlements of Dimini and Sesklo. The city itself is flat and easy to negotiate on foot. Or better still, make like the locals and hire a bike to cycle the city. For those feeling a little more adventurous, the 8-mile cycle up Mont Pelion rewards the sporty cycler with traditional stone tavernas and breathtaking views of the region. If relaxing closer to home is more your glass of ouzo, make for Palia, the old part of Volos, famous for having some of the finest cuisine on the mainland. Head into the narrow alleys, order a tsipouradika (a combination of traditional spirit served with local mezze) and enjoy.

Thessaloniki: the former Jerusalem of the Balkans Founded in the 4th century BC by a friend of Alexander the Great, the city replaced Pella, whose access channel from the sea had become blocked over time. Four and a half centuries later, in 50 AD, Thessaloniki became the very first place of preaching in Christianity when the Apostle Paul came to convert the Greek pagans. Three centuries later, it was still in Thessalonica that the three Emperors reigning over the Roman Empire in 380 signed the Edict of Thessalonica, making the Christian religion the official - and only - religion of the Roman Empire. However, a few centuries later, when the city came under Ottoman rule, it was not the Christians, or even the Muslims, who were in the majority. In fact, from the 16th century until the beginning of the 20th century, it was the Jewish community that made up the bulk of the city's inhabitants - up to 70,000 at the beginning of the 20th century - earning it the nicknames Mother of Jerusalem or Jerusalem of the Balkans. The city's Jewish cemetery, razed in 1942 and since replaced by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, housed an estimated 500,000 graves, making it the largest Jewish cemetery in Europe and probably the world. It is thanks to one of the members of this community that one of the city's emblems owes its name: the White Tower. Built in the fifteenth century by the Ottomans to replace an earlier Byzantine fortification, it was long used as a prison, torture and execution chamber, earning it the name of the Blood Tower. A name that the authorities of the time wanted to 'whitewash'. A Jewish convict, Nathan Guiledi, was offered the chance to do it in exchange for his freedom. Although the tower is no longer white, it has kept its name and now houses a museum on the history of the city.

Days at sea are the perfect opportunity to relax unwind and catch up with what you’ve been meaning to do. So whether that is going to the gym, visiting the spa, whale watching, catching up on your reading or simply topping up your tan these blue sea days are the perfect balance to busy days spent exploring shore side.

Explore the towering columns, and storied remains of Ephesus - one of the most spectacular cities left by the Ancient Greeks. Kusadasi welcomes you to the Turkish coastline and is your base for exploring these majestic remains, which sit just 10 miles inland from the port. The Ephesus UNESCO World Heritage Site is a true archaeological gold mine, and an amazingly well-preserved site - once home to 150,000 people. The grand Temple of Artemis rose up majestically here and was recognised as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World before its untimely destruction. The grand city was a fitting location for such a wonder, and with a mere 20% estimated to have been uncovered, the scale and majesty of Ephesus is hard to fully comprehend, as you walk its ancient streets. Visit the precious Library of Celsus - a gorgeous, double-layered façade of columns and artistry - and enjoy the city's gently illuminated, atmospheric venues - which still host stirring evening concerts. Ephesus's museum adds context to the 25,000 treasures that are exhibited within. After a long hot day exploring, recharge with a perfectly-charred and seasoned kebab or vegetable and rice stuffed grape leaves like dolma. In Kusadasi itself, you can discover a lively seaside city with a buzzing Aegean beach scene, and a glut of restaurants and cafes to kick back in.

Days at sea are the perfect opportunity to relax unwind and catch up with what you’ve been meaning to do. So whether that is going to the gym, visiting the spa, whale watching, catching up on your reading or simply topping up your tan these blue sea days are the perfect balance to busy days spent exploring shore side.

There is a wonderful Italo Calvino story about a city so removed from its own history that it is as if the modern metropolis sits on the site of an unrelated ancient city that just happens to bear the same name. At times Alexandria, which Alexander the Great founded in the 4th century BC, feels like that. Yet the fallen Alexandria of the ancient Greeks, of Ptolemy, Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, and the Romans, and of pagan cults and the Great Library is underfoot, quite literally, as all of modern Alexandria has been built on the ruins of the old, a city that was capital of Egypt from the 3rd century BC until AD 642, when the Arabs first arrived. Overlay a map of the contemporary city with one from antiquity, and you see that many of the streets have remained the same: Shar'a al-Horreya runs along the route of the ancient Canopic Way, and Shar'a Nabi Daniel follows the route of the ancient Street of the Soma. Near their intersection once stood the Mouseion, a Greek philosophic and scientific center that had at its heart the collection of the Great Library. Yet only fleeting glimpses of this ancient city peak through the modern crust. By the early 20th century, Alexandria was a wealthy trading port. The merchants were fantastically rich—cosmopolitan without beingintellectual—and they enjoyed the sort of idle existence that is born of privilege, a privilege not of high birth but rather of colonial rule, which shielded foreigners from Egyptian law. They lived in villas with extravagant gardens, frequented luxurious shops, gossiped over tea in grand cafés, and lounged on the beach in private resorts along the coast. The population was a multicultural mix of Greeks and Arabs, Turks and Armenians, French and Levantines, Jews and Christians, and this spawned a unique atmosphere. It was this city that belonged to Constantine Cavafy, now regarded as the greatest Greek poet of his era. It was this city to which the novelist E.M. Forster, author of A Passage to India, was posted during World War I. And it was this city that gave birth to Lawrence Durrell's Alexandria Quartet, which captivated a generation of American readers when the books were published in the late 1950s. Then quite suddenly everything changed. The intellectuals and merchants fled, driven out of Egypt by the nationalist revolution of the 1950s, the wars with Israel, and the nationalization of their businesses. It's been five decades since most of the foreigners left—some Greeks and Armenians remained. But if you take the city as it is today and not as a faded version of what it once was, you will find that Alex (as it's affectionately known) remains an utterly charming place to visit. The Mediterranean laps at the seawall along the Corniche, and gentle sea breezes cool and refresh even in the dead of summer. Graceful old cafés continue to draw lovers and friends—Egyptians now, rather than foreigners—while the streets remain as lively and intriguing as ever. Alexandria is still a great city, even now, shorn of its many pasts. Sights Alexandria has grown so rapidly in the last 50 years that it now runs along the coastline from the Western Harbor all the way to Montazah, a distance of more than 16 km (10 mi). It is, nonetheless, a great walking city because the historic Downtown occupies a compact area near the Eastern Harbor, while the ancient sights are a short taxi ride away. Dining Alexandria's culinary gift is extraordinary seafood, drawing on the best of the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. The preparation tends to be simple: grilled or fried, perhaps laced with garlic, herbs, or butter, and typically served with tahini (sesame paste) and a couple of salads on the side. The ingredients are so fresh that anything more elaborate would obscure their flavors. Most places display their offerings of fish, shrimp, crab, calamari, and mussels on ice, and you pay by weight or per serving. The price includes preparation and everything else—there are no hidden costs. If you need help choosing, there will always be someone on hand to guide your selection. Because the focus is on fresh seafood, restaurants in Alexandria (especially the good ones) tend to be informal and quite inexpensive for the quality of what they serve. Naturally, many are near the water, some of them appropriately weathered, while others consist of no more than a few tables in an alley. A few places will levy a service charge, but most will not. In all places a tip of 10% is appropriate. Do not expect alcohol to be served in most restaurants. Off-season, Alexandrians eat meals at standard times: 1 to 3 for lunch and 8 to 11 for dinner. But in summer dinner often begins much later. There is nothing more Mediterranean about Alexandria than the pace of dinner in the summer: after an evening siesta, have a shisha (water pipe) around 11, arrive at a waterfront restaurant after midnight, then wrap up the meal with an early morning espresso at an outdoor café nearby. You don't have to eat so late, of course, but you might be surprised how seductive it is. Hotels Hotels in Alexandria are located in two clusters that are roughly 30 minutes apart. Upscale resort hotels are all out along the eastern shoreline in Montazah, close to or even within the manicured khedivial palace gardens—but not convenient to the city or the historic sights. Lower-budget hotels are almost all Downtown, much more convenient but less tranquil. In truth, with the exception of the Salamlek Palace and the Four Seasons, the luxury hotels in Alexandria are drab, generic places not worth what they charge. Fortunately, a couple of mid-range hotels, including the surprisingly elegant Metropole, make attractive alternatives in the city center. Summer is a busy season, when advance reservations are essential. In spring and fall you may find hotels fully booked on weekends (Friday through Sunday), when residents of Cairo head to Alexandria for some downtime. Outside peak summer season, most hotels discount their prices by 30% to 40%. Many hotels quote prices in U.S. dollars or euros, but if you pay with a credit card, your payment will be charged in the equivalent of Egyptian pounds. Nightlife The joke among foreign residents in Alex is that if you want nightlife, go to Cairo. Things aren't quite that dire, but you'll still find that your nocturnal activities lean toward the wholesome rather than the iniquitous. Some top-end hotels have what pass for discos, and the Salamlek has a casino, but the city as a whole is definitely quieter than the capital. Shopping Alexandria isn't a shopping city. There's little to buy here that you can't do better finding in Cairo, where the selection is much greater. If you're looking for chain stores, try Shar'a Suriya in Roushdi, Alexandria's most upscale neighborhood (15 minutes east of Downtown by taxi), or one of the new shopping malls that have opened up in the past few years. Arts/Entertainment The arts scene in Alex lags way behind Cairo, but there are some beacons of interest to explore. Although Alexandria has a couple of annual and biennial festivals, none would warrant a special trip to Alexandria in itself; however, several events are worth attending if you're in town when they're on.

Days at sea are the perfect opportunity to relax unwind and catch up with what you’ve been meaning to do. So whether that is going to the gym, visiting the spa, whale watching, catching up on your reading or simply topping up your tan these blue sea days are the perfect balance to busy days spent exploring shore side.

Colossus of Rhodes: a colossal question mark The sixth of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Colossus of Rhodes has only been standing for a very short time. Although world-renowned, this gigantic statue is a mystery. If nothing remains of the Colossus today, its origins are documented in historical writings about the siege of Rhodes from 305-304 BC. To force the Rhodians not to support Egypt, Macedonia sent his troops to lay siege to Rhodes. Despite the construction of a 30-metre-high siege tower protected by metal plates and equipped with catapults, Rhodes held the siege for more than a year before Macedonia withdrew. To celebrate their victory and thank the gods for allowing them to resist, the inhabitants of Rhodes decided to build an extraordinary statue in honour of Helios, the Sun and protector of the island. According to the writings, it required between 12 and 13 tonnes of bronze. Some of this was salvaged from the siege tower and the rest was financed by the sale of weapons and armour abandoned by the Macedonians. The construction of the Colossus was entrusted to Charés de Lindos, a sculptor from Rhodes. It took him 12 years to complete. Sixty-five years later, in 225 or 226 BC, after having won the admiration of the world for its appearance and the technique used to build it, an earthquake caused the statue to twist at the knees and to topple to the ground its 33 metres (108ft). Although Ptolemy III of Egypt offered to finance its reconstruction, the Rhodians refused, an oracle having forbidden them to touch the remains of the Colossus. The tonnes of bronze on the ground allowed people to continue to marvel at the statue until 654, when the Umayyad Muslims dismantled his remains, whose "fingers were bigger than most statues", according to Pliny. It would have taken more than 900 camels to carry away all of its remains. Everything else is guesswork. Despite all the wonder that the statue aroused, no records of its appearance or location have come down to us. However, scientists believe that the figure depicted in the popular image with his legs spread out over the entrance to the port of Rhodes is pure invention. Technically, the structure could not have survived. It is more than likely that this marvel of engineering, almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty, had its legs squeezed together. Its location, too, remains a mystery to this day.

Enter Souda Bay to land on Greece’s largest island and explore the sun-soaked charms of this fascinating land of legends landscapes and luxuries. Packed with beautiful beaches and rich maritime history Souda Bay’s huge natural harbour is a spectacular entrance opening up the treasures of Crete’s many well-stocked museums rich archaeological sites and charming Venetian fishing towns. The massive natural harbour of Souda Bay also makes the site an interesting spot for military history - with a huge NATO base here as well as the Souda Bay War Cemetery which honours Allied soldiers of World War II. Soak up some Mediterranean sunshine by heading straight to one of the luxurious white sand beaches - where you can recline to a soundtrack of fizzing waves and dine with sparkling sea views stretching out before you. Explore olive groves producing golden oil and savour the deep fruity flavours. The island's renowned wineries also invite you to sample lovingly-crafted Vilana grape wines. Rethymnon’s old town and star-shaped seafront fortress are impressive sites to explore or you can head to Akrotiri to discover the Arkadi Monastery's role in the Cretan resistance - and visit the site where the Greek flag was hoisted high into the sky by rebels in 1897. Crete retains its independent spirit but has gathered countless influences over its history. The island’s most beautiful Venetian port - Chania - is close by and its picturesque old town and collage of historical influences are a highlight of any trip.

Greece’s first capital remains the escape of choice for Athenians, who weekend here to indulge in the town's gorgeous seaside setting. One of the country's most romantic towns, the warm colour palette and tempting, island-sprinkled waters, pull on plenty of heartstrings. With perfect beaches, crystal clear waters for swimming, and evocative fortress-capped mountains, Nafplion is a sun-soaked Greek beauty. A gorgeous blend of Greek, Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman influences, stroll the seafront promenade and soak up the ambience in tavernas and bars. Head into the warren of an old town, which is full of narrow streets, neoclassical architecture and pink-flowered trees drooping over walls. Located on the hill that towers over Nafplion, Palamidi Fortress is a Venetian castle built in 1714, and its steep walls flow dramatically down the slope. If you're feeling brave, a slog of 857 steps will take you to the top to see beautiful views across Nafplion and the Argolic Gulf. Acronafplia fortress is Nafplion's oldest castle, and its walls enclosed the entire town until the 13th century. Just offshore, the Venetian Bourtzi fortress rises on a tiny islet, a short boat ride away across the glistening waters. Venetians built this harbour fortress to protect the town before it later housed the official executioner. Today its hardy walls shake to music, during its summer festival, and the castle enjoys a gorgeous view back over the waves to the town's humming waterfront. Ancient cities like Corinth lie close by, recovered and unearthed after being wiped from history by immense earthquakes.

A city of legend, civilisation and enduring culture, Athens is a majestic and magical urban sprawl. Extraordinary elegance and grace combine with grit and graft in Greece's capital, where highways encase ruins from antiquity, and gleaming museums and galleries stand beside concrete sprayed with edgy street art. These contrasts enhance and elevate the wonders of this 2,500-year-old city, however, which can count notable contributions to philosophy, drama and democracy, among its global legacy. Piraeus' giant port and naval base welcome you to the edge of the Athens' urban area. From there it's a simple jaunt to the centre. The majestic ancient citadel of the Acropolis dominates an elevated platform and is a constant presence as you explore the city. The wonderful remains of the columned temple of the Parthenon - which date back to the 5th century BC - stand here, representing the pinnacle of classical architecture. The nearby Acropolis Museum adds context to your visit and frames the broad views from its giant glass windows. Or rise up Mount Lycabettus, to be rewarded with perhaps Athens' best panorama of the Acropolis sitting high over the city on its grand stage. See the marble horseshoe of the Old Olympic Stadium, where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896, for more of the city's enduring legacy. Elsewhere, golden beaches and temples stretch out along the coastline, should you wish to explore a little further afield. Coffee is an art form to the Greeks, and it's an unwritten rule that coffee time must never be rushed. So prepare to settle down for a couple of hours and lose yourself in a good chat. Feeling hungry - try traditional souvlaki made with sauces handed from generation to generation.