‘By all means, get married: if you find a good wife, you'll be happy; if not, you'll become a philosopher,’ Socrates
Χαιρετισμούς από την Ελλάδα (Chairetismoús apó tin Elláda – Greetings from Greece).
It is just as well that a lot of Greek people speak English because their alphabet (which all road signs, instructions, shops and descriptions use) is VERY hard to interpret!! We have a supermarket underneath our apartment and have to google translate to work out what everything is. We went to the counter with what we thought was washing powder (based on the pic on the container) but it turned out it was washing machine cleaner!!! Luckily the check out woman spoke English and said she didn’t think this was what we were after!!!
We are loving Greece – great food, lovely people, sooooo much to see.
The fates were conspiring against us. With an ETA in Athens of 6am after a 4 hour flight with no sleep and a check in time of 3pm at the hotel, somehow our flight left on time, arrived early, immigration and luggage arrival were efficient and there were no customs to speak of! Our driver was ready for us and the trip to the hotel quicker than usual. Hence we arrived at the hotel about 7.30 in the morning with no room ready and the pool not open till 10am!! We parked up on some loungers on the mezzanine floor – Trap had a nap and at 10 we were going to head to the pool when the fates finally sided with us and reception said they had a room for us. After a drop of our bags and some much needed food and water, we had a wee nap and awoke refreshed and ready to go. A wander round our neighbourhood followed by a lovely dinner and a few drinks at the roof top bar, with fantastic views of the Acropolis, Parthenon and Athens city, and we were ready to hit the sack again.
Athens is VERY busy, certainly competing with the big cities in Italy for sheer volume of tourists around. Not entirely surprising when there’s something to see around every corner. We decided to do the hop on/off bus on day 2 – pretty reasonable at 20 euro for 2 days. We visited the Acropolis and Parthenon, taking in the Temple of Zeus and Odeon of Herodes Atticus, which were packed and very hot with no shade (I can imagine what it was like in July when they had to close due to 44 degree temps). You have to book a time slot to visit and then join the hoards at the correct time to get in. The Parthenon itself had scaffolding up but was still pretty cool. As we were wandering around we got to witness a man asking his partner to marry him, which with tears in her eyes she accepted and they hugged and kissed to cheers from the crowd of strangers who had witnessed the event. You’ll see a pic of the happy couple below (bottom row far right).
After asking directions, we wandered off down the hill to the Ancient Agora. After getting slightly lost, we got there eventually. It’s well preserved and the grounds give you a good idea of what things were like when it still stood. After all this hot work a wee bite and cold beer was in order. And yes, we had forgotten that having a beer in the heat in the early afternoon when you still have to walk places is not that great an idea! Wandering through the Monastiraki area with the flea market which looked more like hoarders shops – I have no idea how you would actually find anything and onto the shopping area! Completing the city tour on the bus to the Panathenaic Stadium, National Archaeology Museum, Roman Forum, Plaka district, Syntagma Square and parliament, plus lots of statues.
Day 3, we took the bus on the riviera route out to the beach. To be honest I wouldn’t bother doing it – the beaches were average at best but it was a nice relaxing day after our treks the day before.
Day 4 saw us heading off on a day tour to the Corinth Canal, Mycenae, Nafplio and Epidaurus. It was a long day but a really good tour. Well-versed guides, and we were left to your own devices at each place which suits us. In the second millennium BC, Mycenae was one of the major centres of Greek civilization—a military stronghold which dominated much of southern Greece, Crete, the Cyclades and parts of southwest Anatolia. At its peak in 1350 BC, the citadel and lower town had a population of 30,000 and an area of 32 hectares. It was a bit of a hike up to the top but fantastic views out over the plains and hills. Not much was left of the town itself but the entranceway was still intact and pretty cool. On to Nafplio a cute seaside town for a wander and an ice cream before heading to Epidaurus archaeological site to view an ancient amphitheatre, hospital, temples etc – we were given smart phones for the whole trip which provided us with an audio tour as well as a view of how the site would have looked like originally when you got to each spot and held up the phone.
On our last day/night in Athens, we headed on a sunset tour to Cape Sounion and the Temple of Poseidon. It was a nice trip along the coast and the temple was quite impressive, however with the steep entry price of 20 euro, many people opted to go up a neighbouring hill to see the sunset. It was a fitting end to our Athens stop.
Heading to the airport for an early evening flight and after a quick 35 min trip (although delayed by 1.5hrs), we landed in Chania, Crete. The awesome views out of the plane window were just what I had imagined the Greek Islands to look like. While I have been to Greece before, I was about 6 years old, so I don’t think it really counts. Crete has a really nice feel to it as soon as you get off the plane – more relaxed, less people, reminded us a little of landing in the Pacific Islands. Our driver was waiting and after a journey through what seemed like a roundabout trip through narrow, rabbit warren of streets, we arrived at our apartment. As part of a hotel group, they provide all the services of a hotel but with the flexibility of being able to self-cater – perfect for our 10-day visit here. You may have seen the Facebook post, but in case not, the apartment was huge with a fully equipped kitchen and a supermarket on the ground floor – brilliant. After self-checking in, we grabbed something for dinner as it was already quite late and crashed.
Day 2 had us unpacking and heading to the beach about a 5-10 min walk away. Lots of restaurants and although there were pay for use loungers all over the place, there was also plenty of free space to plonk your towel down. The water is a little chilly but very clear. Unfortunately, Trap had picked up a cold that also went to his chest in Athens, so the first few days were spent resting up and slowly exploring the old venetian port, old town and beach around Chania. We were kind of in the middle so 10 mins one way beach, 10 mins other way port. Chania is really cute, with lots of restaurants, bars and shops – the old town has more traditional tavernas and a block or so back from the waterfront the prices drop a little. The waterfront is just what you expect the Mediterranean to look like and the restaurants position their tables to look out at the water. We would definitely recommend staying here, although while the 10 days have been good for us to have a bit of a rest (travelling is tiring!), you probably don’t need as long as that here.
Yesterday we hired a car for the day and did a trip around the west side of the island towards Kolymvari then to the south over the mountains to Peleochora and back across the mountains via a narrow road on the edge of a cliff (we kinda took a wrong turn somewhere, but eventually joined the main road again) to Omalos and the Samaria Gorge (a popular 16km walking track) and then back to Chania. It was really great and would definitely recommend hiring a car and having a look around. We went through tiny hillside villages and got to see an authentic part of Crete.
We’re now relaxing, packing and preparing to catch the bus to Heraklion on Sun and then the boat to our next stop, Naxos Island.
So, till next time, I’ll leave you with the Greek national motto - Ελευθερία ή θάνατος (Freedom or Death).
J&T xx
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