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Transocean Tours
MS Astoria
Eastern Mediterranean Cruise Review

Mark
Age: 42
Occupation: LEO
Number of Cruises: 2
Sailing Date: November 3rd, 2005

There is very little information about Transocean Tours or the MS Astoria on the internet. So, I’ll add a review here in an effort to rectify that.

On November 5th in the year of our Lord 2005, we sailed out of Venice on the MS Astoria, also known as the MV Astoria. But allow me to digress. The cruise was a package deal sold by Educational Opportunities Tours (EOT) out of Florida. The tour was called the Second and Third Missionary Journeys of Paul and is offered two times a year, spring and fall, kinda. This trip included optional pre- and post-tour extensions. As I understand it, the Astoria primarily operates as a charter type deal. The ship is a German ship and the executive staff is nearly all German. I did notice that the hotel manager is South African. Much of the steward and wait staff are from Eastern Europe with some a small number of Philippino cooks in the kitchen. An international crew just like every other cruise ship that I know of.

I feel the need to say that this cruise is more of an exploration, a pilgrimage, rather than a vacation in the purist sense. So, some of the operations are geared towards that end, like the rotation of the dinner schedules for the passengers (early and late seatings are rotated for passengers every evening) and the relaxing of the dress code for dinners on board.

We began our trip with a pre-tour of Venice. Once we landed in Venice EOT said that it would be too early to check in at the hotel so they took us to a small Italian town called Padva (Padwa) where we saw some old stuff. We visited an old church and paid too much for lunch across the street. So, here’s the first hint. If you go on the Venice pre-tour and they take you to Padwa walk a couple of blocks before you decide to eat. You will be happier. My wife and I walked down a side street and stopped in a bakery. We had the best Tiramisu I have ever tasted and it was cheap.

In the early evening they took us to the hotel where we ate a lack luster dinner. My wife and I pitched in with a couple of people from the tour group for a cab and headed for the old city. The fee is twelve to fifteen Euros for the ride for the new Venice hotel location to the old city. There are busses that run from the new part of Venice to the old city that are cheap, but you lose the speed and convenience of a taxi. Trust me, there will be people on this cruise that will want to go downtown on the first evening. You might find them by hanging out in the lobby and making conversation with other passengers. Then split a cab. The cars are about 15 euros and the mini vans are 20ish. It figures out to four euros a piece, generally speaking. When we arrived at the old city of Venice we went to the water bus ticket counter and bought a 24 hour pass for like, 15 Euros. We then cruised the Grand Canal at night. That is my second tip. Cruise the Grand Canal at night. We were physically exhausted and still agreed that this was one of the highlights of our trip. Unless you just cannot walk, see Venice at night.

So, We rode the water bus to St. Marks Square and walked there for a while. It was simply wonderful at night. In the evening there are still lots of people in Venice, especially St. Marks but, if you wait till daytime it will be a massive crowd. Still nice but, it looses that romantic feel.

The next day we had a tour of parts of Venice and then some free time. That day St. Marks square was full of people. There had to be thousands of people in Saint Marks. It had a crowded feel. Nevertheless, it was still very good. After the guided tour (which I wont take the time to describe, but was good) we set off on our own to see Venice. We walked over to the Rialto Bridge. It was in that general area where we found a little restaurant. I swear to you that that was the best pizza I have ever had in my whole life. It was nothing short of incredible. There were four of us and everyone said theirs was the absolute best they had ever tasted. The best part was that it was very reasonably priced, almost cheap. Another point I will make for the traveler. Unless you like to spend lots of money and don’t have taste buds, avoid eating at or near St. Marks Square. Do get an over priced glass of paint thinner coffee or wine but, you will eat at your own risk, or the risk of getting ripped off for some very average spaghetti and salad that Wendy’s wouldn’t sell. Rather, just start walking and when you see a place that looks right, eat there. Venice is one of the best places to explore that I have ever seen in my life. There is no way you wont love Venice if you will get out of the immediate area of the tourist traps and find the neat stuff.

Suggestion for walking around Venice: bring a small compass. The streets in Venice twist and turn and the signs pointing to stuff are unreliable. So, you can get turned around really easy in Venice. I had a small compass on my watch and a map provided by the hotel. You cant run a plot to your destination as you might in a forest, but you can stay in a general direction and get to your destination by checking your compass every few minutes. With the compass I was able to walk directly to several locations without getting turned around as I heard other people saying happened to them.

That afternoon we rode a chartered boat to the Ship. From a distance I noticed that the Astoria has very classic lines. It is a beautiful ship. As I got closer I also noticed that it was immaculate. Some people in our group thought the ship was new. But, it is actually over 20 years old, as I understand it. The Astoria was not built like the modern box hotels built to house the maximum number of customers. Rather, it is a true ship. When we boarded we were greeted by a friendly staff. We checked in and got our sail cards and room keys, just like every other ship. We dropped our bags in our room and headed out to, find some food, explore the ship and watch Venice as we sailed away.

We paid for a inside room with no window (obviously the cheaper room). The room had a twin bed and a sofa that folded into a twin bed, a TV, a phone, two small closets, and a small but very functional bathroom. I discovered that for me (6’2 - 235) I was comfortable with everything. The bed slept great. Some people had some semi-negative things to say about the bathroom size, but I had no issue with it at all. The shower is a tad small for a big person, but It did the job and I was happy. The toilet was more like a real toilet than one of the plastic ones you see on most modern ships. It was all good, and spotless.

After placing our bags in the room we headed to the Clipper Salon for some food. The crew had assembled a buffet that I thoroughly enjoyed. The ship, being German, also had Warsteiner beer. I was happy. The best part was sailing out of Venice at night. We watched the sun set and sailed past Saint Marks Square then South towards Greece. Holy Cow I cant tell you how good that was. Sailing out of a beautiful city like Venice at night, with the lights of the old city and the bells ringing, was almost more than a human can bear. Anyone who decides to ride that out in their stateroom should be made to walk the plank. After that we were scheduled for the late sitting at dinner. The menu has options or, you can just say that you want the Chef’s Choices. That is what I did. I must say, I was impressed. The food was wonderful and the portion sizes were perfect. The portions were probably small for Americans given our tendency toward super size. But, it allows you to fully enjoy every course right down to desert, where you discover that you are full to the brim. I loved the food in the Waldorf Astoria (the main restaurant on the ship). In fact, our head waiter was a guy named Rudolph. Rudolph was cool. I liked him a lot. I think we had the best waiter on the ship. Rudolph is German and I learned a little German in college so we had a blast. The wine server was Yanko. He is from Bulgaria and very good at what he does. The first night we chose a Merlot Chianti blend wine from South Africa for dinner. 2003 I think. It was awesome so, that’s what our table drank for dinner for the rest of the cruise, every night.

The next full day was a day at sea. We sailed down the Adriatic Sea to the Ionian. The seas were very calm and the weather was pretty much perfect. The first stop in Greece was Patras. This port is near the ruins of the old city of Corinth. We visited the museum and the site including the spot where Paul preached to the people of Corinth. Later we stopped at the Corinthian canal that connects the Adriatic with the Aegean and enjoyed a bag lunch complete with a whole tomato and some mystery meat that the ship had provided for our day’s excursion. Not real sure what the whole tomato in the bag was about but, we all had a good laugh about it. I think the mystery meat was fried pork. Yes, I ate that and enjoyed it. In fact, I had several pieces. This was my second trip to Corinth and to the canal. If you get there, there is this little old Greek lady that sells these little, what-cha-ma-call-its, she makes for like two Euros. She is like ninety eight years old. Please, just give her the two euros. Call it charity or whatever. We all collected the things we didn’t eat from our huge bag lunches and gave it to her. She will be in groceries for two weeks. It was fun. From there we headed back to the ship expecting another gourmet dinner. We were not disappointed.

Our cabin stewardess was a young lady named Natalya. Natalya was wonderful. What can I say. She was very polite, friendly and was on top of things. Everyone on our section of the second floor loved her.

That night we sailed around the southern tip of Greece and landed at Piraeus, the port for Athens. From there we toured the Acropolis and Mars Hill. We didn’t get to spend a lot of time at the Acropolis. That bothered some people, but since it was my second trip there I was cool with it. I noticed that since the Olympics the steps leading to the top of Mars Hill were much better and safer than before. Here’s a hint for ya: discuss with the people on your bus timeliness. Because the schedule is often tight getting the rest and lunch stops over on schedule is of utmost importance. People seem to linger and linger some more during the stops eating up valuable time at the excursion sites. The most crucial site to pay attention to the time is Philippi. There was a small service for our busses at the place where Lydia was baptized some 2000 years ago. We lagged around and by the time we got to the ruins of the old city we were pressed for time due to the setting sun. Think about it.

After we left Piraeus we sailed overnight to Thessaloniki. This was going to be a long day of excursion. We left the ship in the morning, bag lunch in hand. This day was Thessaloniki and Philippi ending in Kavala. As we toured the ship sailed from Thessaloniki to Kavala to pick us up. We ran right up till dark. In fact, as I mentioned, the sun sat while we were at the ruins at Philippi. When we got to Kavala we had a Greek dinner and some dancers waiting on us. The food at this function was good but, it ran out before all 400 people had a chance to partake (of course you know I didn’t go hungry). The EOT folks seemed, unhappy. Not to worry, the awesome crew of the Astoria whipped up a dinner for us at 9pm and it was great. By now you are starting to discover that it’s pretty easy for me to be happy.

Just a moment of commentary on Greece. Greece is a must see destination. The Greek people are warm and friendly. The food is awesome. I love Greece. Every time I go to Greece I feel like I’m leaving an old friend when I leave. Even if you don’t do it on a cruise you must visit Greece.

That night we headed for Turkey. We docked in the morning at a port called Dikili. From there we headed into Turkey to see Pergamum and Sardis, but on the way we stopped at the ruins of an old church. This location is where the body of St. John was first buried. The bones have since been moved to another location. Pergamum is included in the price of the tour and is wonderful. To go to Sardis cost us 48 Euro extra. It’s worth it. Sardis is so good it makes your hair stand on end. There is a ruin at one of the Sardis locations (there are two) that Harvard University has partially restored. You must not miss this. Don’t go half way round the world and miss Sardis, period. Sardis is a fairly long ride so our return to the ship was in the evening long after the sun had set.

The next morning we docked in the port of Kusadasi Turkey. This day included a tour of Ephesus. To me, Ephesus was the big event for this trip and it did not disappoint. I was struck at the advanced civilization of a city from over 2000 years ago. This stop alone was worth the entire trip. During this excursion we stopped at a Turkish restaurant for a meal. This meal is included in the package deal and includes the foods typically eaten in Turkey. Our guide told us that Turkish people eat mostly vegetables. The meal was served in a cafeteria style and you can pick what you like. I loved everything but, it was a bit exotic for about ten of the 400 people on this trip. I felt rather sad at their unwillingness to step outside of their box and try something new.

Upon returning to the city of Kusadasi we were delivered to a shop that sells and demonstrates the hand manufacture of Turkish rugs. These are the real deal and are expensive. However, a silk, hand woven Turkish rug is, I think, a beautiful, one of a kind, work of art. There is really nothing there worth having that is under a thousand dollars, just so you know. But, if you want a piece of art that you will treasure you can find it here. The rug place will ship for you or they will give you a nice canvas bag to carry your rug home on the airplane. From the rug place we had free time in the city to just shop and hang out. There was a little restaurant right in front of where the ship docked that we noticed a number of the ship’s crew were eating. We stopped in and ordered a sort of sampler plate. I’m not sure that it was on the menu. I think it was more the waiter’s suggestion. It was awesome! In turkey I had the best shish kabob that I have ever even dreamed of. The meat balls were fantastic and unlike anything I have ever tasted. Turkish food is a true delight to the taste buds.

I found the people of Turkey to be very friendly and good humored. The food was really great. You will find that vendors in the streets of Turkey are a tad high pressure. Funny as heck but, on top of their game. That is, as you walk along if you aren’t interested in what they are selling ignore them as if they weren’t even there. Once they see that you’re not interested they will stop. However, if you stop to talk it will take a bit of effort to continue walking. At first this might seem a little awkward but, once you figure out that it is the way things are done it becomes a piece of cake. In the street shops of Turkey you will find lots of knock-off goods like shoes, watches, sun glasses, pock books, leather jackets, etc.. My wife loves the clothes of one of the women’s lines that is really big right now and is rather expensive and semi exotic. We have come to the conclusion that that line of clothes buys from Turkey. My wife stocked up on some really nice “burn through” scarves. Turkey was a fun place to visit and I plan to return someday.

The next stop on this journey was to the island of Patmos where Saint John wrote the book of Revelation. Patmos is a picture book kind of Greek island. It is very pleasing to the eye and seems a very calm and serene place. The tour leaves in two groups, about 200 people each but, divided out in time slots so it‘s one bus at a time in a location. We drove to the grotto of St. John first which is the cave where John lived and had his visions. This is a place where I just wanted to sit for a while. From there we drove to the top of the mountain to see a very old monastery. The monastery contains frescos dating back hundreds and hundreds of years. If you want to see what ancient churches look like this is the place to go. The walk to this monastery is uphill and could be hard on people with bad knees, etc.. However, along the way there are small shops selling icons, prayer beads, and the like that I found to be quite charming.

When we sailed out of Patmos the wind was really blowing and the ride was a tad bumpy. This didn’t affect me at all but, it was more than a few people on the ship could take, so the crowd at dinner was a bit smaller than usual. I pigged out, as usual.

Patmos is the last stop on the trip. So, the ship starts closing things down on this evening. The dinner in the Waldorf was a big deal but, like any cruise, the ship starts doing what they need to do to get ready for the next group. We arrived in Athens, where groups were leaving the ship at all hours. The first group left the ship at 3am for who knows where. My wife and I bought the Crete extension so our group left the ship at 7am sharp. We were driven by bus to the Athens airport and boarded a flight to Crete. Once we arrived on the island of Crete we were met by the best tour guide we had on the whole trip, Joanna. We were taken to the ruins of Knossos a city that may be as old as 7000 years. From Knossos we voted to skip the museum and go to the hotel for some free time in the city and a guided walk. This was the better choice since we did the museum on the last day. In Crete we toured optional cities called Hania and Rethymnon. This was a few extra euros but, I really liked it and would do it again. The hotel we stayed in was located in the city of Iraklion. A few of us walked all over this city and found it to be huge fun.

One evening we stumbled upon a Greek wedding in progress. The bride arrived and we just kind of snuck in on the tails of the wedding party and went up to the balcony to watch. This was very interesting. However, we later discovered that this was the basilica of Saint Titus, built in like 1500, and that his scull was located right there in the church. I saw it.

On the last day we did the museum and then were flown back to Athens in the evening and transported to the Athens Imperial hotel. We had very little time to enjoy this five star before the 3am wake up for the series of flights back home.

The major complaint that I heard was about the unexpected trip to Padwa. We thought we were going straight to Venice and ended up spending several hours in Padwa. OK, I didn’t really care but, I’m just saying. I heard no complaints about the ship or the crew at all. In fact, most everyone agreed that the ship and crew were nearly perfect, all things considered. They won lots of points with us with the last minute meal when the caterer screwed up in Greece.

This was the quintessential whirl wind trip. We covered a lot of territory in a small amount of time and I loved every minute of it. If you decide to take this trip you will find it on the Educational Opportunities Tours web site. I would give two pieces of strong advice.

The first and most important advice is to leave your expectations at home. Come with the attitude that God might be doing something in every situation, every screw up, and every success, just observe and enjoy. You will have a wonderful exciting trip if you do this. There were two types of people on this trip. Those that had no expectations and enjoyed every minute of every day. And those that expected the world to be perfect and stayed grumpy more than was justified. The world is imperfect and this is a pilgrimage, have fun.

Secondly, travel light. Nearly everyone discovered that they had packed too much stuff and had issues carrying the books and souvenirs home because of the weight limits imposed by the airlines. All you need on this trip is toiletries, clean underwear, a few clothes that you can mix and match, two pairs of good walking shoes to rotate out, some money and a credit card, one good waterproof jacket and a camera. There is no formal night on the ship because this is a trip of exploration, of pilgrimage, not meaningless fluff. Come with an open mind and heart and you will have the best trip you have ever taken.

Mark