San Marcos (LSD 25) - Naval Cruise Book

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Tour of Athens Upon arrival inthe Mediterranean, it was gener-all f 1 y e t by many people aboard that the best way to see the most in our various ports of call for the least expense was to tak A ' e part in all tours offered. Athens was no exception. The local tour offered in this ancient city was of about three hom-S d ti d ura on an was conducted both in the morning and in the afternoon. The primary emphasis of the tour was placed on the visible remains of the ancient cultures of once the Museum, and the monument to the Unknown Soldier. contemporary atu-actions as the Royal Palace, the Stadium, Among the ancient sites visited on the tom- were the Erecthion, the Propylea, the Temple of Wingless Victory, Marsi Hin the Theater of Dionysos the Odeon of I-I od ' ' , . er es Atticus, the Temple of Jupiter, the Arch of I-Iadrian, and theruins of the Parthenon. The lgngegt period of time was spent in visiting the area known has the Acro olis whi h ' 1 d d h ' f h P p c incu e t ermns o t e arth-Q enon. This was undoubtedly the high point of the tour, not only because of the length of time spent in looking, over the Acropolis area but also because of the great detail into h' h ' ' ' ' ' ' ' w ic the guide went in explaining the interesting points of the area. ffP1-obably the most interesting single point made by the guide was concerning the Parthenon and it serves to xem- e Plify the general nature of the commentary made in connection with all the ruins visited on the Athens tour. That com- mlent was that the Parthenon was built to stand forever and it has been architecturally acknowledged that such could have bheenlthe case, and it might have, had only nature been involved, but with the inconsistency apparently normal ffor hu- mans the Parthenon was used by 'the Turks in their period of occupation as a powder store house two thousand years after miunutelwhat should have lasted forever. ' 7 to sa those of us who artici ated in the tour of Athens came awa from that visit with not onl a com e Needless 1 P P its completion and a resulting explosion tore clown in af P p . Y Y Pl' ' 'hensivewisual image to long remember, but also with some insight into both the ancient and modern culture of Greece. J x .52 135

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' Pompeii Pompeian history is believed to be as far back as 600 B.C. which in itself is an indication of the his- toric importance of the town. However, the disaster which put Pompeii on themap took place in 79 AD at which time the final calamity of the eruption of Vesuvius took place and buried the town in a depth of 1923 feet of lava and ashes and has thus preserved for us, the most precious document of antiquityg the complete vision of an entire city whose life was ar- rested but not destroyed. The discovery and subsequent excavation of Pom- peii commenced in 1748 and is still continuing to- day. Approximately two fifths of the city has yet to be disentered which is necessarily a slow and exciting progress. Many of us took advantage of the proximity of Pornpeiito Naples and visited the ruins. Many' came away awed by the massive structures constructed by hand alone. Impressive too was the size of the town and the beautiful mosaic work which was the adorn- ment of every house of the rich and even sometimes among the humbler dwellings. Various styles of mural decoration are easily rec- ognizable, many of which are works of painstaking beauty. Pompeii is not easily described, so the best possi- ble advice is that one must see it for true apprecia- tion. 4

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Pisa-Florence-Venice From Santa Margherita, Italy, a small group from the San Marcos began a four day tour, starting with Pisa. In this small town to the south of Genoa is the location ofthe famed Leaning Tower, originally built as a bell tower in the Twelf- th century. Our stay in Pisa was just long enough for a view of the tower and a walk through the Cathedral. After a two hour train ride to Florence we were quartered in the Cavour Hotel, near the Piazza Signoria. Our first eve- ning gave us an opportunity to enjoy the night life. While the night clubs, and restaurants, here were, of course, less elaborate than those in the larger cities we have visited, everything was enjoyable. In the morning we had a conducted tour of the city. A high point was a stop at the Monastery of Santa Croce where Florentine leather goods are manufactured. Then we went to the huge marble cathedral Santa Maria del Fiore. One of d d arble. Inside were several works of the most ornate structures I have seen constructed entirely of white, green an re m art highlighted by Michelangelo masterpieces. Next was the Pitti Palace, ancient home of Florence Royalty, now de- f h voted to art collections. Finally, we crossed the Arno River to Michelangelo Square where we had a lovely view o t e whole of Florence. Ea 1 M da ornin we were off to Venice the wonder city of northern Italy. From 'the station we were transported 1' Y On Y m S , by boat, something so different for sailors, to our hotel, the Grand Hotel Lido. Our tour took us to St. Mark's Square. The Cathedral of St. Mark and the Palace of the Doges or official seat of the government' of the old Venetian Republic. Again there were many famous works of art, oil paintings, mosaics and marble carvings. In the palace was a collection of arms dating back several centuries, everything from suits of armor to whatmust have been the grand-daddy of the mod- ern day machine gun. . We boarded gondolas in front ,of the palace for a trip through the Grand Canal. And while another sailor isn't the most suitable companion for a trip of this' sort, it was fun. We then watched some craftmen fashioning Venitian glassware. A few of us were fortunate in being' able to pmchase this beautiful work to send home. . Late on -Tuesday afternoon we boarded the Orient Express for the return journey. At Milan we changed trains, arriving at Santa Margherita early the following morning. 136