Early this morning, the first of this voyage, I stood on the deck as we sailed through the Dardanelles Straits looking over at the Gallipoli Peninsula. Sailing through here was a bit special for me for a number of reasons not the least of which was that we had visited the peninsula only days earlier.
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| L: en route to Limnos Island. R: (yellow) February 1915, the failed attempt by the British and French fleets to force a passage through the Dardanelles, the Turks had blanketed the strait with mines. (Green) the beginning of the amphibious landing on the peninsula in April 1915. |
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| Entering the harbour at Limnos |
Our first port of call on this voyage of discovery was the island of Limnos which sadly was the departure point for the tragic and ultimately futile invasion of Gallipoli.
Travelling on board with us was Sebastien Bertrand, professor of history and geopolitics; he gave his first lecture this morning on Greeks in antiquity. It was very interesting. The day was to be one steeped in history because, after an early lunch, we were ferried ashore to visit the archaeological site of Poliochni which is considered one of the largest early urban centres of the Early Bronze Age.
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| Poliochni |
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| It is thought this is the site one of the first assemblies/councils |
It was here almost 100 years ago, that archaeologists discovered seven different layers of civilisations, one on the top of the other which is not unusual in itself particularly as the location of this site was high on a cliff looking out to sea – a very strategic location. The Neolithic town predates Egyptian dynasties, the Minoan Kingdoms of Crete and even Troy, but was destroyed by an earthquake in 2100 BC and was never rebuilt. It was quite interesting but most of what we were seeing had been ‘reconstructed’ which spoilt it a little for me. It was pretty hot and exposed at the site so we were thankful to reboard the bus and be whisked off to a local winery for a tour and tasting.
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| The wine tasting was accompanied by local cheese - sheep and goat |
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| Lovely countryside but it was time to return to the harbour and the ship |
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| Behind the town the old fortifications can be seen |
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| Cocktail of the day |
Every day there was a different cocktail but I have posted this one for two reasons - it is made with gin and the name is hilarious, Corpse Revivor No 2. I don't know what happened to the first Revivor! Ingredients: Gin, Dry Vermouth, lemon juice, Triple Sec, Absinthe. A real powerhouse.
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