Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 7 – Athens by Private Vehicle w/ Lift

Date of Visit: June 21, 2013


In Athens, Dad and I were supposed to do a Port Adventure that involved competing in games at the Panathenaic Stadium, but two days before the Pireaus port call we got a note that said our Port Adventure was cancelled due to not having enough people. Thus, we joined Mik and Mom on the Private Vehicle w/ Lift tour that was already booked with an itinerary to visit the Panathenaic Stadium as well as the Acropolis. The four hour tour ended up being just the right amount of time to enjoy both rather leisurely.

Panathenaic Stadium

Here the driver parked right in front for us to visit. Most of the bus tours also stopped here, as it is a good photo stop out in front. However, we also took the time to go inside the stadium. The cost was 3 Euros for adults, but Mik only had to pay the student price (1.5 Euros) and one companion got in free with him. The walkway around the track is rather flat, but it is a large step up onto the track. There appears to be a ramp in the front, but it is part of the gated off section. For us, it was easy to just lift Mik up onto the track. There you can run around the track, take pictures on a medal podium, and see tablets inscribed with the years and host cities of the modern Summer Olympics (they are in Greek and interestingly over the past century the spelling of Athens and London seems to have changed).

For Olympic fans like us, it was cool to see the stadium for the first Modern Olympics in 1896 (it was also used for more ancient games), although it is annoying Dad did not show us the pamphlet that came with the tickets until we were back on the ship because we missed climbing up to the seat with the founder of the modern games on it. Mik would not have been able to go up there, but he would not let me climb up to the top at all because he did not want to wait for us (it was his tour Dad and I joined after all). However, if he had known there was something to see other than a different view he would have been fine with me going up there.

Acropolis and Parthenon

At the Acropolis, the driver drove right up to the ticket office area to drop us off. He could not stay parked there, so he parked the vehicle and came back up to wait for us to be done and then brought the vehicle back up to pick us up and return to the ship.

When we started out tour we were warned that Mik might not be able to visit the Parthenon, as apparently it is pretty common for the elevator to not be operating. The driver checked for us before unloading and if it had not been working we would have gone to the Acropolis Museum instead.

The path to the “elevator” (Dad called it more like a mine car) is where those climbing up and down exit. They only allow one person to go with, so Dad went with him. They both got to go in free. Mom and I could have got tickets and climbed up, but we thought we would likely end up taking longer to do the climbing and since it was Mik’s tour we did not want him to have to be waiting for us.

Mik was glad Dad and my tour was canceled because he would never have been able to do the Parthenon with Mom. The worst pathway was the area at the bottom around the ticket office and shops. Dad almost tipped Mik since his front wheel got stuck in a crack. Up at the Parthenon it was better, although it is old worn stone that can be slippery and not totally even. For an ancient ruin, though, it is pretty accessible other than it sounding like you may need luck for the elevator to be operating when you visit.

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 6/7 – Monsters University 3D PremEAR at Sea in Walt Disney Theater

Date of Visit: June 20, 2013

The Monsters University movie was released in theaters during our cruise and they showed it in the Walt Disney Theater and Buena Vista Theater at 12:01 a.m. for a PremEAR at Sea 7 hours before it was even midnight opening day in the United States. It was shown again many times in the Buena Vista and even though the next day was a port day, we decided to go to the PremEAR because it did not coincide with anything else. The 3D option was only in the Walt Disney Theater, so we decided to watch it there. In hindsight, the 2D in the Buena Vista would have probably been more enjoyable.

The main issue with watching a movie in the Walt Disny Theater is the only wheelchair seating is in the back and it is not in the center. This means you are off center and quite far from the screen. Overall that would not have been a problem, but they never closed all the doors in the back and light came through causing reflections in the 3D glasses.

Mik did not have too much of a problem, though, as right before the movie he asked for a sweatshirt and we gave him his birthday present a few days early, since we had only packed the hoodie Grumpy sweatshirt that was his gift. The hood is fluffy soft and he was wearing it up before the movie even started and it ended up being quite useful for him to enjoy the movie. He was glad we saw it for free, though, as otherwise it was not really worth it in his opinion (he sort of thought it was a sequel, but it’s a prequel).

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 6 - Bella Itala @ Parrot Cay

Date of Visit: June 20, 2013

The Bella Itala was a themed menu that was the same for all restaurants that night.

Drink – Mik did not initially want the special non-alcoholic drink, but once he saw my Dolce Vita he wanted his own. It is a blend of apple and cranberry juice, agave nectar, chamomile tea, pomegranate puree, and fresh lemon juice.

Appetizer – Mik choose the beef and pork tortellini. He liked the tortellini, but not so much the mushrooms and the thyme red wine reduction that went with it.

Soup – Mik tried the Cream of Trevi Celery Soup. It was somewhat of a disappointment because he found no croutons in it like the description suggested it had.

Entrée – Mik had the Spaghetti con Polpette (i.e. spaghetti and meatballs). He really enjoyed the huge meatballs.



Dessert – For dessert Mik tried both the Sicilian Chocolate Indulgence and the Warm Stuffoli. He did not really like the Sicilian Chocolate Indulgence, but it had a pistachio cake and it was kind of surprising he even ordered it. He totally loved the stuffoli, which are mini doughnuts, although he did not particularly like the honey lemon dipping syrup.

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 5 – Prince & Princess Dinner @ Animator’s Palette

Date of Visit: June 19, 2013

The Prince & Princess dinner was the themed dinner for the Formal Night in all the restaurants.

Appetizer – Mik tried the Slow Roasted Duck and Cheese Quesadilla. He liked it, although, it was different than a typical quesadilla since it was with phyllo dough rather than a tortilla.

Soup – Mik had the Beast’s Potato and Sausage Casserole Soup.

Entrée – Mik could not decide between the Oven Roasted Tom Turkey Breast and the Rosemary-scented Medallions of Lamb. He went with the turkey because the sides seemed more to his liking, although we thought sweet Mashed Potatoes meant regular potatoes sweetened and not Mashed Sweet Potatoes, which Mik never likes. In the end, he also asked for some lamb, so he tried both anyways. He ended up preferring the lamb, but still liked the turkey, especially the stuffing with it.

Dessert – Mik choose the Prince Charming Chilled Chocolate Souffle. He had been wondering what a soufflé was since it was on another menu earlier and he had instead choose something else. At least the chilled one was a lot like the mousse dessert.

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 4 – Rome by Private Vehicle w/ Lift

Date of Visit: June 18, 2013

Mik’s first port adventure for the cruise was from Civitavecchia. We decided not to do the first two ports because it required using the tender boat and it was unclear if it would require a transfer. Turned out Villefranche would have been no problem other than it is quite hilly to go around too much in the port town. The gangways up in La Spezia, though, were too narrow at the top and would have likely required carrying Mik and the chair on separately.

Mik did not much care about missing the stuff from La Spezia, but he would have liked to see Monaco. However, he really did love having his first two days basically as at sea days compared to all the people we overheard saying they wished the first at sea day came before the three days of port calls to give more time to adjust to the time and get settled on the ship.


Mik and Mom did only the 4-hour private vehicle w/ lift port adventure. All along we were warned it would only allow time for a panoramic tour, which was fine with Mik and Mom since 4 hours is about their limit on touring, as they are the ones that always prefer the at the hotel/cruise ship parts of vacation and not long days of seeing stuff like Dad and I. Also, it was flexible enough that they could have stayed out longer and just paid for the extra time if they ended up finding something they wanted to spend more time at or wanted to see more things.

The ride between Rome and the port is about an hour to 90 minutes, so that does take up a big chunk of the 4-hour private vehicle tour in Rome. However, they still saw more different parts of Rome than Dad and I saw in our 10.5 hour tour, although that was because we spent most of our time in the Vatican and the other time was just seeing the inside of the Coliseum. Mik and Mom still got to see the outside of both, which while the insides are at least partially accessible Mik probably would not have enjoyed inside much because of the crowds.

During their tour, they mostly viewed stuff from the vehicle, but the driver would stop and open the side door to give a better view. They did get out once, though. They parked about a block from the Trevi Fountain and the driver even pushed Mik to it. He then took a picture of Mom and Mik in front of the fountain. Mik was totally excited to hear when we got back that he went to something I have never been.

One of the coolest parts of the tour for them was that they got to drive around/close to the Capital Hill and Forum area that you normally have to walk through. Mik also liked that the way they tied down the chair made it feel very secure, which really has to be saying something with the way driving and traffic in Rome can be crazy.

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 3 – Island Dinner @ Parrot Cay

Date of Visit: June 17, 2013

The Island Dinner is the theme for the Parrot Cay restaurant.

Appetizer – Mik had the Baked Crab Martinique for this appetizer. He liked the crab and the plaintain chip, but not so much the tortilla chips as they seemed like guacamole flavored.

Entrée – Mik choose the Mixed Grill, although he had extra shrimp and no sausage, since he is not really into sausage. He enjoyed it, although he ended up with more than he could eat, especially since they also gave him extra steak.

Dessert – Mik had a hard time deciding between the Chocolate S’More Vanilla Cake and the Ice Cream Sundae, but he really enjoyed the Ice Cream Sundae, especially the brownie in it.

Disney Mediterranean Cruise with Greece: Day 2 – Chocolate Croissant @ Goofy’s Galley

Date of Visit: June 16, 2013

Mik was really excited on the first full day of the cruise to discover that they not only had chocolate croissants at Goofy’s Galley, but they still did them the good way. It seems they only do it with the chocolate inside and in a rectangle shape at Disney World and he has been missing the chocolate drizzled and inside actually croissant shaped ones since they at least temporarily seemed to disappear from Disneyland when they were remodeling the bakery on Main Street. They are his absolute favorite breakfast thing, although Mickey waffles are a close second. It was also fun for him to have it the first day since the port call was in France.