From Istanbul to Alexandria, travel in the footsteps of Alexander The Great

By Peter Mckay 

The Irish actor Colin Farrell’s portrayal of Alexander the Great in Oliver Stone’s 2004 Hollywood blockbuster Alexander was unsatisfactory from a purist’s point of view. His career  –  conquering three continents by the time he died,…..

Great expectations: The elegant Marmara waterfront in Istanbul was the starting point for Peter McKay’s epic cruise adventure

Most of Stone’s Alexander was shot at Pinewood Studios, Bucks. Swan Hellenic’s MV Minerva zigzagged from Istanbul, Turkey to Alexandria, Egypt by way of Thessaloniki and Kavalla, Greece; Kusadasi, Turkey; Rhodes, Greece; Fethiye, Antalya and Tasucu, Turkey; and then Larnaca, Cyprus; before cruising to Alexandria. We boarded after ….

All at sea: The Minerva looks more like a ship than a cruise liner and has room for about 320 guests

Modern air travel’s arrivals and departures are dismal experiences, but coming and going on ocean liners are pure pleasures. Tugboats fussed around as the ship’s hooter blasted a minaret-wobbling farewell to Istanbul. Minerva glided out into the Marmara Sea. 

A necklace of shore lights sparkled for the next few hours as we headed through the softly warm night towards the Dardanelles and Gallipoli where, in the sad-all-over year of 1915, under the leadership of Winston Churchill, …….. 

Rocks of ages: Temples at Kusadasi, on Turkey’s Aegean coast, were among the highlights of the Alexander the Great cruise

Some new ocean liners resemble blocks of flats and carry as many as 6,000 passengers, but Minerva looks like a ship and has room for about 320. Although ‘retro’ in design, the 12,500 tonnes, 435ft-long vessel was built in 1997 and has ultra-modern propulsion and navigational systems. 

There are six passenger decks, two restaurants, a cinema, the shipwide Darwin Lounge on Main Deck used for classical concerts and lectures, a gym, shops, beauty salon, good library with internet access and all the usual conveniences, including a small pool, card room and smoking room. 

My cabin had a large window rather than a port hole, twin beds, a shower, wash basin and loo  –  cosy rather than ……

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Cruise holidays: From Istanbul to Alexandria, travel in the footsteps of Alexander The Great | Mail Online

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