World Cruise 2017 Day 89 Piraeus, Greece

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

The ship spent the night in Piraeus, Greece.  At 8:40 AM I left on at our called "Corinth Canal Crossing".  At 10:25 AM we arrived for a boat ride on the canal.  The Corinth Canal is 70 feet wide with sloping sides that are 170 feet tall and it is 26 feet deep.  The Roman Emperor Nero made the first serious attempt to build a canal but it was never completed due to Nero's death a year after the planning of the project.  The present day canal was built from 1881 to 1893.  After going to the end of the canal and back to the start we arrived back at the start at 11:25 AM.  We then drove to a spot where we could take pictures of the canal from a bridge over the canal.  We arrived back at the ship at 1:25 PM. 

Piraeus is a port city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens urban area, 12 kilometres (7 miles) southwest from its city center (municipality of Athens), and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf.

The Corinth Canal is a canal that connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea. It cuts through the narrow Isthmus of Corinth and separates the Peloponnese from the Greek mainland, arguably making the peninsula an island. The builders dug the canal through the Isthmus at sea level; no locks are employed. It is 6.4 kilometres (4 mi) in length and only 21.4 metres (70 ft) wide at its base, making it impassable for most modern ships. It now has little economic importance.

The canal was initially proposed in classical times and a failed effort was made to build it in the 1st century CE.  Construction started in 1881 but was hampered by geological and financial problems that bankrupted the original builders. It was completed in 1893 but, due to the canal's narrowness, navigational problems and periodic closures to repair landslides from its steep walls, it failed to attract the level of traffic expected by its operators. It is now used mainly for tourist traffic

This picture was taken from the bus of Church of St. Nicholas in Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the bus of the Church of St. Spridon the PatronSaint of Piraeus.

This picture was taken from the bus of the Holy Cathedral of Agia Triad, the Church of the Holy Trinity.

This picture was taken from the bus on the road to the Corinth Canal. 

This picture was taken from the bus on the road to the Corinth Canal.  These are some of the many olive trees that I saw. 

This picture was taken from the bus on the road to the Corinth Canal.

This picture was taken from the bus at the stop for a boat ride in the Corinth Canal.

This is a picture of the boat used for the Corinth Canal boat ride.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise of the entrance to the canal.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.  This is a bridge across the canal.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.  This looks back at the other end of the canal.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.  It shows the closing of the bridge across the canal.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the boat on the Corinth Canal Cruise.

This picture was taken from the bus of a road across the canal

This picture was taken from a bridge at a stop to view the canal from a bridge.

This picture was taken from a bridge at a stop to view the canal from a bridge.

This picture was taken from the bus on the way back to the ship in Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the bus of the ms Amsterdam.

This picture was taken from the ship of Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the ship of Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the ship of Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the ship of Piraeus, Greece.

This picture was taken from the ship of Piraeus, Greece.  This is the cruise terminal.