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Remarkable Women of Antiquity and Their Times
History, they say, is written by the victors, but school taught us to read between the lines. Even though the ancient world was dominated by men, there were powerful women who shaped the events of their time and influenced the course of history. Our voyage will be in search of these women and the places where they lived or ruled, places of peerless beauty and singular importance. In Bodrum, the ancient Halicarnassus, consider Artemisia, who ruled the city, built the Mausoleum—one of the Seven Wonders of the World—and commanded a battleship in the sea battle of Salamis (480 B.C.).We will come to know Queen Zenobia, ruler of fabled Palmyra, who defeated a Roman force in battle and went on to invade Egypt. We will also reflect on women whose names were lost in the current of history. Such a person is Kallipateira of Rhodes, the only woman ever to attend the ancient games at Olympia. Our unique and memorable voyage will appropriately end in Egypt’s Alexandria, the city founded by Alexander the Great in the late 4th century B.C. Ruling Egypt from famed Alexandria after Alexander’s death were the Ptolemies, whose 300-year-old rule concluded with Cleopatra.
Special Savings:
• 50% off the 2nd person’s rate (double occupancy)
• No single supplement
Itinerary
October 16 • USA
October 17 • ATHENS, GREECE
October 18 • ATHENS | PIRAEUS | EMBARK
October 19 • BODRUM, TURKEY
October 20 • RHODES | LINDOS | RHODES, GREECE
October 21 • FETHIYE | LETOON | XANTHOS |FETHIYE, TURKEY
October 22 • TASUCU | SILIFKE | TASUCU
October 23 & 24 • TARTUS | PALMYRA | TARTUS, SYRIA
October 25 • AT SEA
October 26 • ALEXANDRIA | CAIRO, EGYPT | DISEMBARK
View Detailed Itinerary
PROGRAM INCLUSIONS
• 1-night stay in Athens at the King George Palace Hotel, with welcome cocktail reception and breakfast
• 1-night stay in Palmyra at the
Semiramis Hotel Palmyra, with welcome cocktail reception and breakfast
• 1-night stay in Cairo at the Hotel Le Meridien Heliopolis, with breakfast
• 8-night cruise aboard the all-suite, 114-guest Corinthian II
• Welcome and farewell cocktail receptions aboard ship
• All meals aboard ship, including house wine, beer and soft drinks with lunch and dinner
• Open bar aboard ship throughout the cruise
• Complete program of tours and excursions
• Educational program of lectures and discussions by accompanying guest lecturers
• Professional Travel Dynamics International tour staff
• Complete pre-departure materials
• Baggage handling and transfers abroad on the designated program departure and arrival dates
• Port and embarkation taxes
• Gratuities to porters, guides and drivers
Friday, October 16, 2009
USA
Fly from the U.S. to Athens, Greece.
Saturday, October 17
ATHENS, Greece
Arrive in Athens and transfer to the King George Palace Hotel. Enjoy a cocktail reception this evening at the hotel.
Sunday, October 18
ATHENS | PIRAEUS | EMBARK
Visit the monuments of the Acropolis in the morning, commissioned by the great Athenian Golden Age leader Pericles, and reflect upon the influence of Aspasia, his mistress. One of the true “women behind great men,” Aspasia is indicated in ancient sources as having directly contributed to the sublime rhetoric of Pericles’ Funeral Oration, the Socratic method, and the intellectual methodology of Plato. In the afternoon visit the National Archaeological Museum. Alternatively, there will be an excursion to Brauron to visit the Sanctuary of Artemis and the Vorres Museum. Board Corinthian II in the late afternoon.
Monday, October 19
BODRUM, Turkey
After a morning at sea cruising in the Aegean, arrive in Bodrum, ancient Halicarnassus. Bodrum was the birthplace of Herodotus, the “father of history,” and home of Queen Artemisia, a military advisor to Xerxes and the only female commander of a naval vessel during the famous Battle of Salamis. The city was also the site of the famous Mausoleum, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. In the 15th century, the Knights of St. John built the massive castle of St. Peter here. Visit the citadel, which houses the Museum of Underwater Archaeology and the Carian Princess Hall, displaying finds from the sarcophagus of Ada, sister of Artemisia.
Tuesday, October 20
RHODES | LINDOS | RHODES, Greece
Rhodes was the home of Kallipateira, who flouted the male-centered culture of Greece to become the only woman ever to attend the ancient Olympics. The daughter, sister, and mother of Olympic victors, she disguised herself as a trainer to watch her son. Her disguise fell as she embraced her victorious son, though in honor of her champion family, she was freed from punishment. Ascend Monte Smith, the site of the ancient acropolis, and see the restored 2nd-century b.c. stadium, the theater and the ruins of temples dedicated to Zeus, Athena and Pythian Apollo. Spend time at leisure in Rhodes.
Wednesday, October 21
FETHIYE | LETON | XANTHOS | FETHIYE, Turkey
Corinthian II will navigate the scenic Bay of Fethiye to dock at the port city of the same name. Drive to Letoon, the shrine dedicated to Leto and her children, Apollo and Artemis. Legend has it that Leto, pregnant by Zeus, gave birth on the island of Delos and brought her children here to wash them in the nearby river. Excavations indicate that the site was linked to the worship of the Mother Goddess since early times. Visit the remains of temples and other buildings, and continue to Xanthos, the most imposing of all ancient Lycian cities, built below a great cliff.
Thursday, October 22
TASUCU | SILIFKE | TASUCU
Picturesque Silifke was the ancient Seleucia ad Calycadnum, founded in the late 3rd century B.C. Achieving a period of prosperity during the Roman period, Silifke was an early center of Christianity, and here we meet an important person of that pivotal period, St. Tecla. A friend and follower of St. Paul, she was tortured and imprisoned for her faith in her native Iconium (modern Kenya). Upon fleeing to Silifke, she built a grotto on a mountain near the town, where she lived out her life. Many cures were attributed to her, which quickly spread her fame throughout the region and contributed to the growth of Christianity. We follow the ancient pilgrims’ road to St. Tecla’s grotto. Nearby are the remains of a large basilica, built by Emperor Zeno in 476. We also explore Silifke and visit the 2nd-century A.D. Temple of Zeus and the Archaeological Museum.
Friday, October 23 - Saturday, October 24
TARTUS | PALMYRA | TARTUS, Syria
From Syria’s port of Tartus we take an overnight excursion to Palmyra. An extraordinary archaeological site, Palmyra was ruled for part of the 3rd century A.D. by one of antiquity’s most powerful personalities, Queen Zenobia. She took over after her husband’s death, but Rome refused to recognize her and sent an army to expel her. She met the Roman force in battle, defeated it, and led her army against the rest of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, bringing the entire territory under her control. During our two-day sojourn at this unforgettable place, which was a vital link on the historic Silk Route from China to Europe, we will have time to leisurely explore the city’s prodigious remains, including its colonnaded streets, temples and tower, and to contemplate the grandeur of Palmyra under Queen Zenobia. Overnight at the Semiramis Hotel Palmyra.
Sunday, October 25
AT SEA
Relax aboard as Corinthian II cruises towards Egypt.
Monday, October 26
ALEXANDRIA | DISEMBARK | CAIRO, Egypt
Founded by Alexander the Great in 332-331 B.C., Alexandria became the paramount city of the Hellenistic period and a great center of learning, culture and science. On the death of Alexander in 323 B.C., Egypt was entrusted to Ptolemy, one of his generals, who founded a dynasty that lasted until 30 B.C. The last Ptolemaic monarch was Cleopatra, whose life, beauty, prowess and relationship with Mark Antony have fascinated writers and the public from ancient times to the present. Disembark in the morning and explore the remains of this once resplendent city, including the finds from ongoing excavations in its harbor. In the afternoon, drive to Cairo and spend the night at the Hotel Fairmont Heliopolis, located near the airport.
Tuesday, October 27
CAIRO | USA
Transfer to the airport for return flights to the U.S.
