Engaged in a friendly little game of vicious contact water polo with strapping young northern Europeans. (Silber, center, red cap).

Our hero (center) going back for a pass.

The kids cut up in Agios Nikolas.

Relaxing on our deck.

One of those "no way a photo can capture this" photos.

Roadside reliquary, set precariously atop a steep cliff.

Inside a Cretan cave. Spooky!

Indolent sheep dog insists on being driven.

Among the many traffic hazards in Crete: sheep.

Children (bottom) and goats (top).

Moments later, we received an award for being the millionth tourists that day to think of the "imitating the fresco" pose.

Inside the palace of Knossos.

And then ... on to Knossos, the second most important historical site in all of Greece. Frankly, if you ask me, it's always had a bit of problem with that whole "second most important" thing.

Even harder to believe, the guy we ask directions from turns out to be the grandson of Costas, the person the Nicholsons rented from in 1973 (see pic Allie is holding).

After much searching and asking of directions, we finally locate the house Allie lived in for three months in 1973.

Dinner at lovely restaurant Pelagos.

The children have gone native.

Crete is so beautiful we are always hugging.

Here they look real, but in real life, the water, mountains and sky actually look like a special effect.

If you have a low tolerance for amateur photos of natural beauty, we suggest you skip the entire Crete portion.

Even the view from the john is pretty nice.

Nicholas rises from the sea.

More goddamn beauty.

Crete is so beautiful we take like a thousand pictures a day.

More view from our deck.

Actual unretouched photo of the view from our deck. I am not making this up.

Candia Park, our hotel in Crete. The bell in the clock tower rings every half hour, which is odd, since nobody seems to care what time it is.

Atop the good ship Uncle Festos or whatever.

Great light, nice backdrop, time for - model poses!

The children settle in to their stately state rooms.

The good ship Festos Palace, bound for Crete. You are forgiven if you mistake it for a two-car garage.

The Port of Athens. Where we will board our overnight ferry to Crete.

These are the Greek palace guards. They never smile. Which, given the circumstances, is pretty amazing.

We force another unsuspecting tourist to get on the ground and photograph us from the front of the Parthenon, at the proper angle.

Look closely and you can see me shvitzing.

Kids in the ruins.

Here we are on the backside of the Parthenon.

View of the Forum.

At the Parthenon - we made it!

Climbing to the top.

At the Acropolis.

And now, cut to Athens. No shots were taken of the flight, through Rome, including a mad (and, as it turns out, unnecessary) dash through the Rome airport.

Looking down on the Port of Nice.

Children even higher above Nice.

Children above Nice (at the Castle).

We buy candies. Nicholas jumps for joy. We plan to bring delicious candies home for all our friends. But we eat most of them ourselves later that day.

Candied tangerines, Nice.