Back to the Med Greece/Turkey in 2013! Complete!

[MinnieDiva]

1st sea day narrative and pictures are up pg 1.

 

[MinnieDiva]

Yes that what she means. No more if I were not upon the sea on any DCL ship.

We heard that apparently someone had complained. Whether that is true or not, who knows.

 

[mindelmouse]

hold for Civitavecchia: June 18, 2013

The Plan: Private tour arranged with Rome in Limo for 12; private guide to accompany all day. We have pre-purchased tickets for the Forum/Coliseum/Palatine hill here: http://www.ticketclic.it/database/B2c__/order.cfm?siteDefID=170&LN=1
If you choose to buy these ahead of time, be aware that you need to print them immediately. The email that is sent to you confirming the purchase doesn't have the tickets attached to it, but does have a link if something goes wrong with your attempt to print (run out of ink, printer dies, power failure...you know).
Link to Vatican tickets: http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking&codiceTipoVisita=26&step=2.

Suggested dinner attire: Cruise Casual
Menu: Island Dinner (Parrot Cay...but not for us!!)

We have Palo dinner reservations this day.

Ahhhhh.....Roma! So very excited to return here! We got off the boat and were met by Serena, our guide. All 13 of us (Mindy and fam, us, Lisa and fam, and Serena) all got on the shuttle bus that took us outside the port area. Plenty of busses here, and the distance to walk is a bit much considering how much walking you'll be doing here later. Easier just to hop on and press on.

Serena was lovely....pleasant and easy to understand (keep reading forward for our recount of 2010 to understand why this is important). She also was very, very good with the kids and made accommodations for my dad's knees.

I didn't mention this in yesterday's post, but DD was up in the middle of the night throwing up. I hadn't thought much about it, as she's sensitive that way, and usually it's a one-and-done sort of thing for her if she's hot, tired, or eats too much junk, all of which were feasible at this point in our trip. However, after the 1 hour bus ride from the port to Rome, we got off the bus and made our way to the Coliseum and Ashleigh just throws up in the street. Sigh.....I see our day in the toilet hanging out with the driver, right? We encouraged her and everyone else to move on, but Ashleigh actually felt better afterwards and crying "why me?" (so pathetic and cute all at the same time) and wanted to go on. Maybe the bus ride? Could be. No fever, able to keep fluids down after. Poor kid. Anyway, we pressed on and that was the end of that for that day.

We started off in the Coliseum this time. As we had the tickets and the guide, there was absolutely NO waiting to get in. Wading thru the crowds was a different story, tho. It was WAY more crowded that last time, and we were there VERY early. It was also the hottest and most humid day of our trip. We missed out on the forum, but I think due to the crowds and heat we were all ok with that. We kept bouncing from shady spot to shady spot.




Our Guide:



The Trevi fountain was up next. Lovely as always, it actually did not seem as crowded as in our last trip. Did I mention that it was hot, though? We were doing a lot of walking, as apparently the rules about where tour vans can and cannot park have been changed in the last few years.




We walked to the Pantheon, which did not have any renovation going on this time!! I was able to get a picture without scaffolding!!!



Then we ambled over to the Piazza Navona before heading to lunch. We went to a little place off the piazza, and were not disappointed. Dad and I got a yummy salad, DH got some sort of pasta with peppers, and Ashleigh had bread. Lisa and her DH split a caprese salad, but oddly...in Italy there is no basil on it. I had many versions of something with tomato and mozz over the trip and I have to say that there is a quality that just can't be matched at home.

I, of course, since I have been raving about my pasta carbonara since my last trip, had to have it again and I was not disappointed. Sam had their Margherita pizza, which is different than in the US...In Italy Margherita is like a cheese pizza here...and I think the Basil issue that Lisa and Rich has was on their pizza..it was served without basil because the kids asked for it that way

Our afternoon was all about the Vatican. One observation I need to make here is that during this entire day, even though we were seeing all the same sights as last time, we went about this in a totally different way and I feel that this was a completely different experience than last time....different views, more info...I don't know...but I do not feel that I was shorted in any way.

There was a HUGE line out side the Vatican...that we had no part of !! We walked in, were able to pay for our reservations with credit cards, and went on our way. Serena made sure that dad and I went on our own little tour down a hallway that would result in less walking and less in the way of stairs for my dad. She gave us a time frame that we needed to keep to make it to the Sistene Chapel to meet the rest of the group there. It worked out well....we got there 10-ish minutes before the rest of the group, allowing my dad to have a bit of a sit before we pressed on. We did A LOT of walking that day. Jim's fitbit had us at something like 7 miles at the end of the day. Did I mention it was hot and humid??

Kim forgot to mention the best thing ever We didn't lose Sam this time

Serena walked us out and around to the the Basilica, guided us to Pieta, and then up for pics before heading out past the Swiss Guards and back toward the van pick up spot, a bathroom , and a water stop. She was not going to be accompanying us to the port, so it was a bit awkward at this point to suss out just how to render payment. We'd been given a set amount for the entire tour, not split driver versus guide. So....I just laid it out there. She was pretty outspoken, so I figure beating around the bush would be counterproductive. We were to pay her and she'd take care of the details with the company. So...we gathered up our Euros, tip included, and handed it over. She actually looked shocked at the total. We'd all budgeted a 15% tip...10% guide and 5% driver...so it was a healthy amount over the total for the tour. She asked us if it was correct....and we explained our thought process. We actually thought she was going to cry...we were profusely thanked. I can only think at this point that most travelers don't really conceptualize exactly what a gratuity is supposed to entail. She over and above earned her tip. In this country she would have been a solid 20%...if not a bit more...she was THAT GOOD. The driver...got us where we needed to go. Unlike Stefano the previous day, he had no need to really talk with us as we were constantly getting commentary from Serena.

Our drive to the port was another hour. I'm pretty sure we all napped. Hot, tired, sweaty, we needed to go get ready for Palo. That night was our choice as we wanted to avoid Parrot Cay. Don't get me wrong...the food at Parrot Cay is fine, but the atmosphere is so dark, dated, and in need of overhaul. So...back we went for showers and preparation for a yummy dinner. We'd walked enough to earn our meal tonight, and dad got to experience it for the first time!!! The kids headed to Topsiders for dinner...which worked out well! I got a call from the Parrot Cay manager and they wanted to know if they could seat another group at our table as they'd returned late from their tour. Everything works out in the end, right?

3 years ago, our group of 10 (i believe) had the center table at Palo and had Andrea from Croatia. She was fabulous then, and just as fabulous this time. And...she remembered us. Not just Jim...who knows everyone, but Sean and I. We got there earlier than Mindy and Jim and it was us that she singled out. That's what I love about DCL cast members...



ok... more later..gotta go put kiddio to bed...

The show that night (that we didn't see) was Paul Zerdin. He's a comedian and ventriloquist. We've seen him before and he's very funny. In spite of the fact that we didn't have to get up early, we opted to not do any of the adult stuff and went to bed. I need to note that IMO, the late night entertainment was lacking. There were little in the way of theme nights, and at the end of the cruise, there was NO PUB SHOW. While the pub show we found out has been removed fleet-wide, I have no idea why the rest of the nights were lacking. Anticipation that people would be exhausted and just got to bed? Poor planning on DCL's part? Not sure. But again, this is just my perception. You may feel differently when we get the navigators in here. I'm having issues with my scanner....

Link to Rome Navigators:

http://s1236.photobucket.com/user/skamerrill/library/Navigators/Rome?sort=3&page=1

 

[mindelmouse]

hold for Sea Day 1: June 19, 2013

Our crazy FB group has several meets today. We ordered some group t-shirts and will do a picture in the Atrium, then break away girls vs guys for various social activities.

Suggested dinner attire: Formal Night
Menu: Prince/princess Menu'
Show: Twice Charmed

After a day plus of travel, 1 day in Barcelona, 3 days in pots, and jet lag to contend with, a sea day was most welcome. Up to this point, I'd had no trouble waking up early to get to what ever it was that we had to do, but at this point, I was ready to sleep a bit. There was supposed to be a group run that morning that we'd dubbed "olympic event #1" where whomever was so inclined to meet on deck for for a quick 5k would do so. I went to bed the night before with the thought process that I'd run if I woke up in time, but there was no way I was going to set an alarm. I think I'd even had all my stuff set out and ready to go so that I wouldn't make noise. That may have actually been the following day. What ever the case, I don't think I woke up until after 9. I was elected to head to deck 9 (lol...I volunteered, tho DH was supposed to do the same the following day) and get beverages and some light breakfast fare. I ran into another FB/dis'er up on deck 9 wondering where I'd been. . Sorry!! Sleep muy importante!!!

Snack eaten, I was up to the gym, as by this time the weather was a bit too warm to run for my taste. Remember...I live in a cool environment year round!! So indoor exercise equipment was the name of that morning's game! After a shower, I donned appropriate cruise attire......my swimsuit.....and the requisite t-shirt and went on with my day.

***We had to hand in our passports this day due to Greek immigration regulations. We got a receipt for them and picked them back up on the 3rd sea day.**** FYI...the did not stamp them .

I too woke up at about 9 am. I went up with Jim for a cup of coffee at the Cove Cafe, then we went down to Deck 4 to walk. Within 15 minutes of getting there, we saw Haylee sitting on the side and she reminded us that it was 11 a.m. and the Gold/Platinum reception was starting in Rockin' Bar D. Jim had gone to the first one we were eligible for in October and found out a lot of future plans DCL had, so I was anxious to hear what they had to say.

I got there to a packed house. I found the only empty table in the back by the DJ booth. They were passing out drinks and hors d'oeuvres. Mike the assistant cruise director was there and he actually sang. Peter came up and introduced the Captain (now no one expects me to say this - especially the way I bash Peter as a cruise director, but I have to say, after 4 cruises with him. He's actually growing on me. He was by far the friendliest on this cruise. He interacted with us and stopped to talk to us all the time. Very unlike cruises I've had with him before). The Captain spoke but really didn't talk about anything we didn't know about all ready. Just what the changes to the Magic were going to be. At the end the passed around the Mickey crispy treats and it was over. I actually went with Sam for a quick lunch upstairs while Haylee and Jim went pin trading and then went to the atrium.

The t-shirt I was wearing was for our 1pm in the Atrium. Mindy started the t-shirt initially for our small party of 8.....one of our group has his own business of printing/car wrapping/t-shirt design graphics stuff. Puredata did an awesome job with the logo and between he and Mindy this was opened up to the whole FB/Dis board group and we agreed to convene for a photo! So I inquired with Shutters if they could come take a shot of us thinking that they would get a bunch of people buying the picture, but they were going to charge us a sitting fee. Really? Are you kidding me? So pxlbarrel went and got her tripod and we did it that way. We were going to do it with a timer, but some poor person volunteered to take the shot. Now...We made quite the sight...a large flock of people...2 males of whom were wearing dresses. WHat? you ask..yes. Dressed. The meet AFTER the photo for the men was a "princess tea party". So...a father son combo decided to make good on that...tiaras and all!!! These guys were on a few excursions with us, and nicer people you could never meet. I feel truly blessed to have met so many awesome people from this cruise.



So the men were off to the pool bar. Dad joined them there for a while before heading back inside. I had the wave phone and was the contact of the day with my daughter, who was at the pool most of the afternoon. The women were off to one of the staterooms....I do not know what her Dis name is.....if she even has one....but they wanted to host a meet and they had planned ahead with Cava!!! There were either mixed drinks (cranberry or OJ) or straight Cava. I had never had sparkling wine with cranberry juice, but it is yummy!!!

I had a 2:30 appointment with the front of the ship and the strait of Messina!! Pxlbarrel and I headed to deck 10 far forward and proceeded to sit right at the front of the ship. We were joined by ame and Mindy not too long after. We'd run into an officer who confirmed that we were going to go thru about 3:30 pm. So...we sat. It progressively got more and more crowded as we went thru the Strait. Some really, really obnoxious woman thought it would be appropriate to save a spot with her book and coffee and completely griped (use a different word, tho) out a poor man who was trying to walk by and inadvertently kicked over her coffee. She either didn't hear my snarky comments about her behavior or she ignored me. Go figure. The sail thru was beautiful! But as we approached 4pm, I'd had enough of sitting in one spot and decided that it was time to be done.








I'm pretty sure I headed to the pool deck at this point to get some sun! I forgot to mention that the evening before I ran to the laundry room right after we'd gotten back from Rome and had immediately scored a washer, so I was caught up at this point and didn't have to worry about laundry . The adult area was packed. Remember all those rooms that didn't have kids? We could get loungers by the family pool, but not the adult area. And an observation...there were an awful lot of people trying to reserve chairs. BAD etiquette. The last sea day (it was so cold and windy), I was trying to tough it out and there were many chairs reserved with stuff but no people around to back up those holds. Rude.

I actually, seeing how crowded the adult pool was, went over to the Goofy pool (where I believe Kim finally found me) and sat there and read my book until 5 pm, when I had to take Haylee to get her hair done.

It was formal night, and as I'd mentioned, Mindy and I had managed to get our daughters hair appointments. Mindy's DD went first and then mine. The hairstylist, Emma, was from Scotland and was so pleasant to listen to her talk. She was great with the girls, mine who was grumpy and thought that I was going to let her do her version of a bun for formal night. Yeah. Not so much. Lately it's been a battle to get her to do anything but pull it into said bun. It didn't help that the ship water was doing nothing nice with the texture of her hair. I wasn't having much of an issue with mine, but I have in the past. So DD went to the salon dressed and ready to go, knowing that we'd go to the show after the hair appt and that then I was going to inflict family photos! The horror!!! All the men had tuxes, so we wanted to go all out! The line for the pictures was not all that bad, so we had some time to kill and headed to the Promenade Lounge for a drink and there was a DJ, so DD and DH did some dancing! The Captain's reception was in the Atrium, but the drinks weren't too great, IMO.







Dinner as always wasn't bad, but nothing sticks out and as I usually don't do food porn I have no idea what I ate. (But in looking at pics to add in here is the menu!!) And no...I cannot make it any bigger...I can barely read it in full size on the computer:



I know that after dinner I was ready for bed in spite of sleeping in that morning. Besides...I was done with walking in heels...2 nights in a row was plenty....

So while Kim went off to bed, I walked around the corner from our dinner in Lumiere's and found a bunch of our FB/DIS crew having a toga party in the Promenade Lounge. Now you need to understand that originally they wanted to have a toga party on Mykonos night, but it was supposed to be pirate night, so they decided to do it early. First order of business for me, get rid of heels and get comfortable, so after changing we wandered around until we found the crew back up on Deck 9


The bunch of us stood at the bar by the Goofy pool and Ann Marie the bartender served us drinks. At about 11;30, Tisa (Rockin' Bar D host) and Lee ( Mr. Bingo) came out on the Goofy stage to rehearse a new deck party they were having for Greece. We apparently didn't hear the director's telling us to ignore them and became very interactive in their rehearsal, serving as test subjects.


After that a few of us chatted with Tisa for a while and then off to bed.

Link to 1st sea day Navigators:

http://s1236.photobucket.com/user/skamerrill/library/Navigators/1st sea day?sort=3&page=1

 

[Tired mom of 3 boys]

I am loving all the trip reports and the stories! OPA!

 

[mindelmouse]

I am loving all the trip reports and the stories! OPA!

Thanks my OPA friend.

 

[lilpooh108]

Yes that what she means. No more if I were not upon the sea on any DCL ship.

We heard that apparently someone had complained. Whether that is true or not, who knows.

Wow, that's too bad. That show as hilarious.

I liked your Rome day. Looked like a lot of fun.

 

[MinnieDiva]

2nd sea day narrative is up!

 

[MinnieDiva]

I'm having vacation withdrawal.


I wanna go back!!!



Long day at work.....more tomorrow....

 

[Deb in IA]

I'm having vacation withdrawal.


I wanna go back!!!


Long day at work.....more tomorrow....

Me too!

 

[MinnieDiva]

....narrative is up. Pics will come tomorrow....my bed calls...

 

[pxlbarrel]

What time did you guys get off the ship? When we left on our Port Adventure, there were girls, just before you got inside the terminal, in white flowing robes handing us olive branches. I stuck that in my hat (did not call it macaroni) and wore it all day. LOL

Hold for Athens: June 21, 2013

We opted to reserve a private tour after seeing how fast the "rent-a-van" option thru DCL went. After contacting a few different companies and doing research on all the applicable websites, we decided to go with Hellenic Private Tours: http://www.hellenicprivatetours.com. A party of 12 for Athens and Cape Sounion AND a guide all day is $580E. Entrance fees and lunch is not included with this price.

Suggested dinner attire: Cruise Casual
Menu: Greek Menu
Show: The Dream Goes On

I was curious about if there was to be any fanfare to our arrival in Athens, but other than the welcome sign, there was not.

 

[MinnieDiva]

What time did you guys get off the ship? When we left on our Port Adventure, there were girls, just before you got inside the terminal, in white flowing robes handing us olive branches. I stuck that in my hat (did not call it macaroni) and wore it all day. LOL

Holy cow. Completely forgot about that!! Thanks...will go back and correct that!! I didn't get a picture and didn't take the leaves myself, so I'd put it out of my mind.

You should post that sunrise picture of Athens you took. It's awesome!!

 

[MinnieDiva]

is edited and up!!!

In looking at the pictures there were some details I added in

 

[mardonna]

what med ports have wifi...im leaving today

 

[pxlbarrel]

what med ports have wifi...im leaving today

Malta ... if you eat at one of the port terminal restaurants, you can use their wifi.

Paraeus is supposed to have wifi but I could never connect.

Mykonos... if you eat at one of the restaurants, you can use their wifi.

Unlike the med cruise we took 2 years ago, I found it incredibly "frustrating" that I couldn't find a decent wifi or even a bad wifi at most of the ports. "Free" wifi meant buying something at a cafe or restaurant or entering a cell phone number and or a lot of information before you could use it... Even the Starbucks in Athens ... I had to buy something to get the password to the wifi. (I did buy something but ironically, I didn't stay long enough to use it.) LOL

 

[abayaflowers]

Free WIFI @ VF@their cruise terminal.
LaSpezia restaurants, but we love eating so it was no problem.
Civitavecchia...tapped into the free WIFI @McDs across from the cruise terminal entrance.
Athens you need to go to the lobby of Terminal A 10 mins away.
Kusadasi we loved the terminal restaurant and got WIFI.
Too busy in Mykonos but the delicious restaurants all had Wifi.
Malta's city centre had it. It was free.

 

[MinnieDiva]

what med ports have wifi...im leaving today

Looks like you got that answered!! It's all over, but you just have to keep searching for it...

HAVE FUN!!!!

 

[mindelmouse]

hold for Sea Day 2:June 20, 2013

Early am photo shoot with Pixelbarrel arranged for this day. I've admired her pics for a while and cannot wait to meet her in person !

Spa appointments and an alcohol tasting today as well (wine??).

Suggested dinner attire: Cruise Casual
Menu: Bella Italia

There was no sleeping in this sea day! Pxlbarrel had declared that the photo meet would occur at 15 minutes prior to the posted sunrise time. That time....was 5:53am. Ouch. Alarm set for 5:30 and clothing set out so that I could do photos then hit the gym. I seriously considered ignoring that alarm.....but I did not and was rewarded with a lovely sunrise!!


The ship just before sunrise:





There were 4 or 5 of us hearty souls out there! We had a nice time and I really enjoyed the fact that it was daybreak, outside, and I wasn't freezing! I'm sitting here typing this and my fingers are cold, I'm wearing socks, and have a sweatshirt on .

I headed to the gym and locked up my camera, then got in a nice workout. By this time, I wanted a cup of coffee and headed to Cove Cafe, got both DH and I cups and headed back to the room, figuring that he'd be up by then. Not so much. So I grabbed my book and went to deck 4 to read for a while. Now THAT was a decadent luxury!! Coffee done and it was approaching 9am. Time to route the fam out of bed. They were actually up by then, and DD once again persuaded me to get her breakfast. Specifically, apple juice and a donut. LOL!!

Both Sean and I had hot stone massages set for this day. I love hot stones! As my daughter says; "pats on the back and rocks that are hot". Works for me! Mine was first, and I enjoyed every minute!! When done, I had time to kill and after sunscreening up, I hit the pool deck for some sun. DD was there, so I could interact with her a bit. DH's massage was about 2-ish, as we had Mixology afterward. That's why he got the later appointment...he can shower faster!

Mixology...was awesome! Mindy had pre-arranged tastings shoreside so that we'd be our own group. There was a 40-person cap on the groups. If you drink alcohol, this is worth doing. I'm more of a wine drinker but still enjoyed our experience. I think there were 5 drinks we tried in all. They'd ask questions and people with correct responses would get to go up and try their hand at making a specific beverage. DH walked in late and answered that the glass was empty to the bartender's question and got to make a Bahama Mama. Mindy got to make something but don't remember what. My dad went with us and sat back looking very relaxed:



See Mindy behind the bottles??




After the tasting, several of us headed to the not-so-secret aft deck on 7. We collectively brought wine, cava, cheese, and bread, and just hung out and talked! We had such a nice time in a quiet location getting to know more about our new friends. We discovered that it really is a small world after all! In fact, we were there so long that we completely missed the show that evening. This was the "relaxing" part of the vacation!!



Link to 2nd sea day navigators:

http://s1236.photobucket.com/user/skamerrill/library/Navigators/2nd sea day?sort=3&page=1

Not much to add to Kim's posting...my day was pretty much the same...got up late, went for walk on deck 4 and actually hooked up with some new friends and chatted (made walk go much faster. Then I did some pool time until about 2.

Here's some more pictures from our Deck 7 get together -


After dinner, Jim and I went to Rockin' Bar D to see the Paul Zerdin (ventriloquist) adult show. It was so crowded we ended up in Diversions watching it on a screen.

 

[mindelmouse]

Hold for Athens: June 21, 2013

We opted to reserve a private tour after seeing how fast the "rent-a-van" option thru DCL went. After contacting a few different companies and doing research on all the applicable websites, we decided to go with Hellenic Private Tours: http://www.hellenicprivatetours.com. A party of 12 for Athens and Cape Sounion AND a guide all day is $580E. Entrance fees and lunch is not included with this price.

Suggested dinner attire: Cruise Casual
Menu: Greek Menu
Show: The Dream Goes On

I was curious about if there was to be any fanfare to our arrival in Athens....we were greeted by toga-wearing citizens handing out olive branches. I did not, however, get a picture of them. Thank you pxlbarrel for reminding me of this!! We saw this sign, though:



We departed the ship and walked thru the port building and looked for our welcome sign. We were met by the owner, who initially was scheduled to be with us, but due to something or other, he greeted us and introduced up to our crew. Yeah...should have written down their names, but I'm willing to bet Mindy has them . Each of us were given a little bag with a small tour book and postcards in them! I don't have pics of them at the moment, but will do so. It was a nice touch! Our crew of 12 boarded the tour bus and we were off. The port of Piraeus is nothing to write home about, but we got from there to the Acropolis area in 20-30 minutes. It was very strange (to me) that something so iconic and historical as the Acropolis was accessible in such a high density neighborhood. I guess Rome is very much that was as well, but it didn't seem quite the same.



We started out by walking around the Museum area. None of us were really into going inside, though I've heard that it was pretty amazing! The glass flooring on the outside of the building allowed us to see some excavated areas:



As you turn away from facing the museum, you see the magnitude of the Acropolis and the sheer height we were about to go up.



The walk wasn't bad, but I can imagine that my poor dad was looking at it in dismay. But up we went, with our guide telling us in detail about what we were seeing. This was the best part....it wouldn't have meant as much (to me) without the narrative! It turns out that she was an Athens native. She opted to take us up the opposite (back? less traveled?) side...her rationale was that it was less crowded. She was right. By the time we got to the top and headed toward the other side to head down it was very, very crowded. It was hot that day, but it was a dry heat and there was quite a breeze. At the top by the flag there was an outpost that you could go up to to over look the city, and it was almost too windy for me to stand up there. I didn't have a hairband, either, to ponytail up the hair. I was very cool to look down on the city, especially later when we went down to the temple of Zeus and took pictures looking up to mirror the ones I took looking down. Hadrian's Gate is right there by the Temple of Zeus,







Looking toward the Temple of Zeus:

Looking back up from the Temple of Zeus:



Temple of Zeus:

Our Guide's name was Athanasia (I got the correct spelling from Frank when he thanked me for the Trip Advisor review) and our driver's name was George. In the gift bag's that Frank gave us there were 3 different books. I was lucky enough to get all three. Some more pics:
View from Acropois

I might have the order a bit wonky, but we went to watch the changing of the guard at the Parliament building. It was a high noon, too!! That was really neat! I took a bunch of pics, but I think I got video as well. I'll post it if I can figure it out. The guards have an escort that follows them. After the ceremony and the guard change, the escort ensures that their uniform is in the correct spot and whatnot, and answers the questions the crowd may have as the guards are not allowed to speak for an hour. They will make some sort of movement or click of the heels if a tourist gets too close, tho. You can take pictures with them but cannot get too close. We ran into the owner again at this stop and he came over to ensure we were enjoying our tour....



From here we were off to the Olympic Stadium. You can pay a fee and work out here. While we were there, there was a male gymnast doing cool handstand poses for pictures. It was neat to watch.

High noon is a good guess, but it was 11 a.m. (remember she was afraid we were going to miss it because it was like 10:45 when we got back on the bus.)
The guards were neat. They were actually there guarding the tomb of the unknown soldier. The ceremony of it all was amazing. Jim took very quick successive photographs that actually look really neat. Have more to add but will need to do it later....