September 28 – Wednesday Our wake up call came at 4:45 Italy time, but it was actually 5:45 Greece time, we didn’t realize that we lost an hour, so, M went to check with reception to see if that was correct, and it was. So, all three of us were not that well rested, tonight we will sleep well!
It was 6:30 when we disembarked and we drove around Igoumenitsa to find a Wind store we had looked up to see if we could find it to get a Greek SIM card for the phone. Found that, then it was now 7 am and a local bakery was open, so we bought bread and a couple of breakfast rolls and went to sit in the park and watch the sun rise. Our apt. was about 50 km away and we couldn’t get in until 9:30. We decided to go find a local supermarket and buy some groceries. Buying groceries in different countries means learning what things are called. Some things it’s easy to figure out the name or what it is, but other things, not so easy. Luck for us some items have about 5 languages on the back of the packaging. Next we try the Wind store, but its not open, oh well.
With groceries picked up, we head to find our apt. for the next 4 nights. The people have given us very easy to follow instructions which is a good thing as we’re out in rural northern Greece, and although Navi knows there are roads, many of them have no numbers and there are no addresses. It is wonderful that the highway signs are in English as well, because we have no clue how to read Greek with its combo of letters. We find our place is in a tiny village in a wide open valley which is farmed. There might be 50-80 houses here. The centre of the village is where the roads cross each other. There are a couple of coffee shops and a bakery - that’s it.
The view from the Eden Garden Villa is beautiful and the grounds are beautiful here, swimming pool, olive trees, orange trees and lots of flowers. The people who own the place are from the UK and fell in love with the valley 5 years ago and decided to come live here full-time. It’s not hard to see why they bought here.
The rest of the day was spent going into Kanallaki, the biggest town around, to get a few more groceries as well as get a Greek SIM card for the phone. Once that was done, we headed back to kick back and enjoy the swimming pool that had a great view of the valley as well as being quite refreshing, yet still warm in the 30 C temperature. Oh yeah, we were thinking we could get used to this weather. Here it’s warm with a slight breeze, but no humidity. In the evening, it cools down, so we can keep the windows open and enjoy the cooler air.
September 29 - Thursday After a restful sleep and sleep in, making up for the short sleep the night before, we get up to beautiful sunshine. J gets down to schoolwork, M works out, while T armed with her camera, goes for a walk along the road we came in on the day before. Again, the sun is shining, promising to be a warm day, T walks along the enjoying the view of the valley. It’s so wonderful to enjoy the Greek countryside. Once back from the walk and breakfast is finished, M and T decide to go down to the coffee shop at the village crossroads (center of the village) for a cappuccino.
Our hosts, Dave and Jill have shared a bunch of info about the area, and we plan to go check out Ammoudia Beach, about 20 min from the villa. We arrive at this huge sandy beach which is virtually empty now that the high season is over. There are a few caravans parked under the trees, not sure if they are there for overnight, or just the day.
We decide to visit one of the local tavernas for lunch. We spot Thomas’ Restaurant, which has all its tables outside, the inside is empty. It is pretty much empty, but Thomas in his Greek accented English calls out, “Welcome my friends”.
We head over, find a table and T tells him we speak Italian too, and he brings us menus. The other couple there, from the UK weren’t offered menus and they commented on this.... Anyways, J orders calamari and M and T have tuna moussaka. The helpings are huge and very good, no way we could finish, but that’s ok. We enjoyed sitting under the trees, looking out to the water and introducing J to some Greek food.
After paying, we are off to the beach. The crescent shaped beach is huge and has lovely sand. The water is quite warm and we all enjoy swimming in a protected bay out of the steady sea breeze.
We even found an umbrella and loungers to use, for the cost of 5 Euro or the purchase of a couple of refreshments which added up to the same amount. We were cool with that, as in Italy, some of the beach clubs charge 30 Euro for the day to use an umbrella and a couple of loungers. The bay is shallow, so we can go out for a long ways and occasionally we’d come across “hot spots” in the water that was extra enjoyable. We had a great afternoon enjoying the beach, sea and sand. It was like having our own private beach - a great experience.
September 30 - Friday Another beautiful sunny day to enjoy. While J starts his schoolwork assignments for the day, M works out, and T goes for another walk in a different direction, enjoying the sights, coming across a farmyard full of sheep and baby lambs, some look like they were only a few weeks old - very cute. A bunch of the fields had recently been harvested of the corn, so could see what the dried out husks looked like. The farmyards are much more simple than what’s seen at home, with great use of wooden pallets to make pens and cover for sheep to be out of the hot sun.
After breakfast, M and T decide to go down into the village center to have a coffee. After a quick lunch we decide to go for a drive to check out a few places around here that we read about in the tourist binder in our apt. We drove to Glicki where we come across a gorge we could walk up along the river. It is a pretty sight and the river is crystal clear. We don’t have the proper footwear, but we do find a taverna with this sweet spot right along the river bank with tables right next to the water. We decide to stop here for a refreshment. We sit down by the water and even stick our feet in the river - reminds us of the Columbia River and its flesh numbing water! Refreshing it is, but we’re not interested in walking further up the river.
On we go with the exploration, through a bunch of little villages, we came upon an archeological site, Nekpomanteio (oracle of the dead) likely the oldest one we have visited this far. It is where one could get in touch with the ghosts of the dead. As we read about the site we learn that the ‘priests’ put people on a special diet and fed them herbs that promoted hallucinations, then led down to the subterranean room to talk to the dead. It was pretty cool to walk amongst partial walls from the sanctuary which was built in 4th century BC. We could even go underground to the chambers where people would go to do their talking.
From here we travelled along the highway to go to the resort town of Pargo, about 25 km from where we are staying. It is much more of a resort town, reminds T of Positano on the Amalfi Coast, hotels, inns and restaurants stacked along the hillside. The beach is about half the size of where we were yesterday, but much busier with tourists. The couple we talked to yesterday at Thomas’ told us that it was quite expensive. Looking at the place, we could see it likely was. We found a parking spot, not plentiful in this area and went for a walk to tour the place a bit. On the agenda was to also find a little taverna to have a couple of the great appetizers that we have come to enjoy. We found a place with an awesome view of the bay, beach and part of the village and ordered saganaki (fried cheese), really good and a plate of calamari fritti, J’s favorite.
We enjoyed soaking up the view as well as enjoying some great taverna food. Neat place to see, but we prefer the little village experience.
We enjoyed soaking up the view as well as enjoying some great taverna food. Neat place to see, but we prefer the little village experience.
October 1 - Saturday - We start the day as usual J gets some downtime and then its school lessons for him, then after have some breakfast M and T go down to the village for a cap. M goes back to help J and workout, while T starts another morning walk down a different road past walnut trees, pomegranate trees along roads beside farmland. It’s another beautiful morning, however, on the way back there is smoke in the valley as the locals are burning what’s left of the cornstalks in some of the fields. Today is our last full day in the valley. We decide to head to the beach one again to enjoy the beauty and the water. J has a water filter science assignment and we decide that the beach is the perfect place to conduct it. So armed with our supplies we head off to the same beach as the other day.
Unfortunately it’s not as clear today, so it’s not quite as enjoyable, but we head to the same place, buy a few refreshments in exchange for using their lounges and umbrella. It’s even more isolated than the other day, maybe 6 people on a beach that is about 3/4 km long. All three of us get involved in J’s water filter assignment. J decided what materials to use, and goes in search of some good dirt and debris (not hard to find on the beach as smoking is much more prevalent in the countries we have visited than at home) to mix with the water to put through his filter. After a minor adjustment he is successful in getting clear water. T takes a picture of ‘science on the beach’ (and successful experiment) to send to J’s teacher and the lesson is complete!
Before dinner, M and T decide to go for a coffee at the usual spot. It’s Sat. night and the place is hoppin! (at least for a town of 100 folks). There are a couple of tables of men playing cards at the one other coffee shop in the village, and a bunch of men sitting under the tree across the road from us catching up on the village news ( probably wondering where those two strangers are from).
This is definitely a male dominated society as the women are not out with the men. Our hosts tell us this is mainly the case. There are not too many young people in the village. If people have young families, they usually have left this village to look for better work and schooling for the children. Many go to Germany, and only come back to their homes in the village for a few weeks a year. The village school closed down last year (it only had 8 students) They get transported into Kanallaki. We chat with the owner of the coffee shop a bit and learn that her mother (who doesn’t speak English at all and works the morning shift) does not know how to make cappuccinos and only knows how to make Nescafe - which then made sense to us as yesterday’s coffee wasn’t as good. So M remarked, oh, I guess we can’t get one tomorrow am. She answered, I could be here, what time will you come by? We said 9:30 and she said see you then. Cool!
This is definitely a male dominated society as the women are not out with the men. Our hosts tell us this is mainly the case. There are not too many young people in the village. If people have young families, they usually have left this village to look for better work and schooling for the children. Many go to Germany, and only come back to their homes in the village for a few weeks a year. The village school closed down last year (it only had 8 students) They get transported into Kanallaki. We chat with the owner of the coffee shop a bit and learn that her mother (who doesn’t speak English at all and works the morning shift) does not know how to make cappuccinos and only knows how to make Nescafe - which then made sense to us as yesterday’s coffee wasn’t as good. So M remarked, oh, I guess we can’t get one tomorrow am. She answered, I could be here, what time will you come by? We said 9:30 and she said see you then. Cool!
The evening is spent organizing suitcases as we have found out that we are only allowed one suitcase each on our upcoming tours, so we have to reorganize our fourth bag to be sent home with things we don’t need. With that task accomplished, we spend the rest of the evening relaxing.
October 2 - Sunday - Car’s packed and ready to roll by 9. We drop off the keys to Dave and Jill and have another chat for 10 min. or so, finding more about the area; mandarins on their trees ripen in Nov. - Dec. and don’t last long on the trees, however, their oranges will start ripening in Nov. and stay on the trees without falling off for about 6 months. They have fresh OJ for all that time, and freeze some for their use for most of the rest of the year. We were amazed at this. In this valley they only have produce that is locally produced. So right now they have grapes, but in another month or so, they will not see grapes until next Aug./Sept. If they go to some larger areas, they can get access to other stuff which isn’t brought into their area.
We said good bye and then went down for our coffees. She was there, waiting for us. A group of men were once again under the tree across the way - we greeted them with Kalimera (good morning) and they replied. Greeks typically like to be addressed before they reply. We had a couple of caps and bottled waters for 2 Euro, the least expensive we’ve had our entire trip thus far. This is one of those neat experiences we’ve had on our trip to add to the cultural side of the visit.
Today we headed to Patra, a few hundred km away. Along the way we stop at Nikopoli, (Octavius had it built to commemorate the defeat of Anthony and Cleopatra’s army) to see the walled city as well as trying to find a great example of a Greek amphitheater. We are unsuccessful in finding the theatre site, but do come across partial remains of the temple in honor of Augustus.
The drive to Patra takes us through a number of towns and villages, with farmland for grazing as well as crops.
We even came across greenhouses loaded with tomato plants and other veggies which was reminiscent of our drive through Puglia region. It’s interesting seeing the change in vegetation as we drive. We drive through the mountains and we can see where the some new infrastructure has been put in place for a better highway through this area. It’s a continuation of the work already completed across the north of Greece, from west to the eastern border with Turkey of 4 ;lane divided highway. There are a number of tunnels and bridges complete as well as some new stretches not ready for paving, but have been carved out of the mountainside. Once the highways are complete it will be welcomed as some of the stretches we travelled on were very curvy. The Greek have an interesting way of driving. On many of their 2 lane highways, there are shoulders with one lane, each direction. Unlike at home, they tend to use the shoulder lane as another lane to drive on. At first it seemed strange, as we approached vehicles, they would move over onto the shoulder and continue driving allowing us to pass. We saw this was the thing to do here! So we notice that double-line markings on the road seem to mean nothing here, except to those that are not from Greece. It was not uncommon to see 4 lanes of traffic if cars were passing slower vehicles in both directions. Oh well, once M realized the practice, he adapted. While is Greece, do as they do. As J has commented before, “Dad, once you get back to Calgary, you’re going to have to stop all those bad habits you’ve picked up here”. One must do what one must to survive in the motor rat race!
We even came across greenhouses loaded with tomato plants and other veggies which was reminiscent of our drive through Puglia region. It’s interesting seeing the change in vegetation as we drive. We drive through the mountains and we can see where the some new infrastructure has been put in place for a better highway through this area. It’s a continuation of the work already completed across the north of Greece, from west to the eastern border with Turkey of 4 ;lane divided highway. There are a number of tunnels and bridges complete as well as some new stretches not ready for paving, but have been carved out of the mountainside. Once the highways are complete it will be welcomed as some of the stretches we travelled on were very curvy. The Greek have an interesting way of driving. On many of their 2 lane highways, there are shoulders with one lane, each direction. Unlike at home, they tend to use the shoulder lane as another lane to drive on. At first it seemed strange, as we approached vehicles, they would move over onto the shoulder and continue driving allowing us to pass. We saw this was the thing to do here! So we notice that double-line markings on the road seem to mean nothing here, except to those that are not from Greece. It was not uncommon to see 4 lanes of traffic if cars were passing slower vehicles in both directions. Oh well, once M realized the practice, he adapted. While is Greece, do as they do. As J has commented before, “Dad, once you get back to Calgary, you’re going to have to stop all those bad habits you’ve picked up here”. One must do what one must to survive in the motor rat race!
We came out of the mountain pass to drive along the side of the mountain to see Patra on the other side of the strait. We took the toll bridge, with a wonderful design - M was pointing out the specifics of the design to J, across to get to our hotel. Today’s hotel was located at Achaia Beach. The hotel was right on the beach, our room on the top floor at the end and a wonderful view of the water, bridge and the mountains across the way. We could pick out from where we had entered the peninsula.
We’re organized so that we don’t bring our suitcases into the hotel, just a couple of bags that have things we need for the next three days before we reach our next extended stay apt. It’s 2 pm so we go in search of a taverna, for a bite to eat. We find one on the beach a few hundred meters from the hotel. The menu is totally in Greek, but the waiter tells us in English what he has. We all make our choice and enjoy the sunshine and yet another great view. There certainly are no shortages of those on this trip!
T decided to go for a walk while the boys went to check out the pool. The beach had public access from many areas, so there were a number of people sitting on lawn chairs enjoying the beach. It wouldn’t be one of Greece’s finest beaches, quite rocky, certainly not as nice as the one we had been on earlier this week. J did brave the cold water of the swimming pool, here they tend to cool the pools vs. heating like we do at home. Neither T nor M were interested in going in, much to J’s chagrin. Later in the evening, we had a wonderful meal on the terrace of the hotel. We finished the evening watching a good movie on TV in English.
October 3 - Monday We decide to go down to breakfast before 9 as we are heading to Elefsina which is a suburb to Athens. J told us he would like to see the Acropolis and the Parthenon in Athens, so we decided to stay near Athens and check out the situation there before going in. We had read that there is a general strike planned for Wed. so we’ve decided to go in today.
The drive from Patra to Athens is mostly on completed 4 lane motorway, with some areas still under construction. It is a fairly easy 2 hour drive. Our hotel is not located on the main road of this city, and it takes us a bit to find it. The roads are not designed to handle parking on both sides and two lanes of traffic, so negotiating the side streets take attention. We arrive at the hotel and are pleased with all the amenities. We check in, drop off our bags, as we don’t want them in the car when we go into Athens. The girl at the desk assures T that around the Acropolis, all is quiet and other clients have said all is good.
We go out in search of a taverna for a bite to eat and then head into Athens, which takes about 20 min. We decide to go right into the centre and find a parking spot as close as we can. We follow Navi and head toward the Plaka which is the area below the Acropolis.
T sees a parking sign, we head down a narrow lane to find the parking area. Athens being really old, the roads were not designed for traffic or parking lots, we come across the parking lot, which is a vacant lot, cars seven deep side by side - not what we’re looking for. Luck would have it that we found a spot at the end of that lane! Scored!! we all think. M had been expecting to search for quite awhile to find a parking spot in downtown Athens so we had lucked out here. We realize that this is right near the hotel M and T had stayed in two years ago, so we know how to get up to the Acropolis.
T sees a parking sign, we head down a narrow lane to find the parking area. Athens being really old, the roads were not designed for traffic or parking lots, we come across the parking lot, which is a vacant lot, cars seven deep side by side - not what we’re looking for. Luck would have it that we found a spot at the end of that lane! Scored!! we all think. M had been expecting to search for quite awhile to find a parking spot in downtown Athens so we had lucked out here. We realize that this is right near the hotel M and T had stayed in two years ago, so we know how to get up to the Acropolis.
We have a great time walking amongst the ruins.
For M and T, it was a great time to reminisce about our trip 2 years ago and marvel once again at the effort it took to build this meeting place. J took his video clips, M and T took photos and then headed back to the car to get out of Athens before traffic got too heavy. As we headed back to our hotel we remarked about how well the trip into the city went. Things all fell into place.
For M and T, it was a great time to reminisce about our trip 2 years ago and marvel once again at the effort it took to build this meeting place. J took his video clips, M and T took photos and then headed back to the car to get out of Athens before traffic got too heavy. As we headed back to our hotel we remarked about how well the trip into the city went. Things all fell into place.
Back at the hotel, we went to the pool and then had another nice dinner on the pool terrace at our hotel. We enjoyed the evening and then off to bed.
October 4 - Tuesday - Today we are headed for Delphi which as we look at the map is in the mountains east across from where Patra is located. The drive takes us along some great motorway, not too busy with traffic. The land goes from well populated and industrial near Athens, to smaller towns and villages with marble quarries as well as farms. There are some places where it looks quite poor. As we drive along we see crops that have white fluffy tops, which ended up being cotton plants. This is a first for all of us. M stops alongside of the road and T leans out the door and grabs a piece of cotton and we all check it out. We saw lots of cotton pieces lying alongside the roads, some likely blown off in the wind. While driving, we did see some cotton being harvested, using something similar to a combine, plucking off the white balls and discharging into an awaiting dump truck. That was cool as none of us had seen this before.
We left the fairly dry valley to travel up into the mountains. We actually went as high as 1100m through a ski town with chalet style condos. Definitely different architecture than your standard Greek house. Not far from here we reached our destination, Delphi. This small mountain town has a couple of main streets, each only one way. There are a number of hotels perched along the hillside catering to the busloads of tourists who come to Delphi to see the ruins of Apollo. We find our accommodation with ease, on the second one way street.
T hops out to talk to the George, the owner of Pithos Inn. It is a small family run inn with about 8 rooms. George makes room in front of the inn for M to park the car, moving a couple of bikes as well as a planter. T flags M down who has parked down the street in the first empty spot he comes across. He comes along and parks in the newly arranged spot. We won’t be moving until we leave tomorrow AM. The ruins we plan to visit are within a 10 min walk from the hotel. We have lunch at a taverna across the street from the inn while we wait for our room to be ready. We have a delicious lunch on the terrace of the restaurant which has an amazing view of the valley and inlet from the sea below.
We spend time admiring the sights and view before we walk back to our room. J does some schoolwork before we head off for dinner at the taverna across the street. Another great meal to end the evening.
T hops out to talk to the George, the owner of Pithos Inn. It is a small family run inn with about 8 rooms. George makes room in front of the inn for M to park the car, moving a couple of bikes as well as a planter. T flags M down who has parked down the street in the first empty spot he comes across. He comes along and parks in the newly arranged spot. We won’t be moving until we leave tomorrow AM. The ruins we plan to visit are within a 10 min walk from the hotel. We have lunch at a taverna across the street from the inn while we wait for our room to be ready. We have a delicious lunch on the terrace of the restaurant which has an amazing view of the valley and inlet from the sea below.
In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god Apollo after he slew the Python, a deity who lived there and to protect the centre of the Earth. This site dates back to 9th century BC. The site is huge and we walk through it learning about its history. We walk up quite a distance to see the remains of the temple built to honor Apollo, a theatre as well as a well preserved stadium the site of Pythian games every 4 years. At the stadium we could even see the start and the finish lines. We could certainly see where the modern day design of the stadium - amazing.
October 5 - Wednesday - We have breakfast at the inn and then head over to a coffee shop for J to do an assignment before heading out to our next destination, Volos, on the eastern shore on the Aegean Sea. As we leave Delphi, we descend into the valley below on a roadway that reminds of one of those remote controlled race car tracks. T has M turn around so they can take a picture or it.
We have accommodation for 4 nights at a home in the mountains overlooking Volos. The drive up to Volos is uneventful and a good portion of it is on motorway, so T and J do an English lesson on the drive. When we get to Volos, we find a taverna for lunch and then try to find our apartment. Finding the house we have rented is difficult because the directions the rental agent sent us has English translations for roads which are not written in English on the street signs - oh frustration! We decide to call Nikos, the guy who is supposed to meet us, and he comes to rescue us. We end up being not far from the place. As we see where we end up climbing the mountains to reach our place, we realize, we would likely not have found this place, again although Navi knows there are roads, there are really no addresses. In areas like this we learn we can plug in the GPC longitude and latitude coordinates when we have them, although we did not have them for the apartment.
We part along the roadside and walk down a cobble path, about 100 meters or so before we come to a walled entrance which Nikos unlocks and we enter a wonderful courtyard with an amazing view of the valley with Volos and the sea.
Oh yeah - this is a cool place. It is a renovated farmhouse built in the 1800’s. It’s a great place to spend the next 4 nights. The only drawback are the cats who like to prowl and meow outside the door to interrupt the peacefulness. One thing, the Greeks love their cats - they are everywhere and T not being a cat lover, they are not appreciated! We drove back down out of the hills to find a grocery store to pick up supplies for the next several days and then we headed back to settle in for the next few days.
Oh yeah - this is a cool place. It is a renovated farmhouse built in the 1800’s. It’s a great place to spend the next 4 nights. The only drawback are the cats who like to prowl and meow outside the door to interrupt the peacefulness. One thing, the Greeks love their cats - they are everywhere and T not being a cat lover, they are not appreciated! We drove back down out of the hills to find a grocery store to pick up supplies for the next several days and then we headed back to settle in for the next few days.
Bonus! there is a Greek channel that carries English movies with subtitles in Greek, on tonight’s agenda, Ocean’s Thirteen, seen it, but it’s English TV, we all sit down to watch it.
October 6 - Thursday - J wants to kick back and enjoy the place and do some of his schoolwork. We are trying to get ahead of schedule because we are heading into a 2 week tour of Turkey and don’t know how much time there will be to get the workload completed on time. So, he’s been working hard to do so, not always with enthusiasm, but he understands the push.
While he’s doing that, M and T decide to go for a walk up to the village Makrinitsa. T sees the path which is a continuation of the one that runs along the outside of the courtyard of our apt and we decide to take it. It climbs meandering behind places and eventually meets up with the main road. Once on the road, we continue our climb, wondering if there are other pathways we may get on, but don’t come across any. We walk up the steady inclining road, with many switchbacks, admiring the view as well as wondering, what possessed people to settle up in these hills.
There aren’t olive groves, or fruit orchards. The houses are perched along the mountainside with some having access by the cobbled pathway. Many of the places are well maintained, with white stucco, wooden shutters, layered rock roof tiles, lots and lots of rock walls, some great looking gated entryways. We spent about 30 minutes walking up the road until we came to a parking lot which we figured was for the village. We decided to head along a narrow street which was lined with tourist shops filled with preserves, fresh nuts, bunches of herbs. We are both surprised at the number of shops hawking its wares where up here in the hills.
Not what we were expecting from this village way up in the hills. Must be much busier in the summer as evidenced by the number of tavernas and coffee bars along the main lane. The view of the valley and water below is even more extensive than where we are staying.
There aren’t olive groves, or fruit orchards. The houses are perched along the mountainside with some having access by the cobbled pathway. Many of the places are well maintained, with white stucco, wooden shutters, layered rock roof tiles, lots and lots of rock walls, some great looking gated entryways. We spent about 30 minutes walking up the road until we came to a parking lot which we figured was for the village. We decided to head along a narrow street which was lined with tourist shops filled with preserves, fresh nuts, bunches of herbs. We are both surprised at the number of shops hawking its wares where up here in the hills.
Not what we were expecting from this village way up in the hills. Must be much busier in the summer as evidenced by the number of tavernas and coffee bars along the main lane. The view of the valley and water below is even more extensive than where we are staying.
We bought a little bottle of the local grappa - tastes quite like ouzo to enjoy in the evening. We walked back out of the village to this cool little cafe near the parking lot built amongst the rocks and with lots of rock work, to have a cappuccino and enjoy sitting under these huge trees, beginning to change color. The walk back to the apt. was uneventful, and yes, shorter in time. After dinner, we are able to catch another North American movie at 9 pm - Gran Torino.
October 6 - Friday - Nikos suggested we drive over to the beaches along the Aegean sea side of the pennisula, so that’s what we decide to do this afternoon after J completed a bit of schoolwork and we had lunch. The drive is about 40 km and will take about an hour. We will be driving through the mountains and from the look of the map there are some serious switchbacks and curves along the way. We travelled through a number of villages on this Pelion Mountain range to get to the Aegean side. The villages are small. The ones near us and on the other side had some inns, catering to summer travelers. Sometimes we overlooked the water as we climbed and other times we were traveling through tree and shrub covered land. We even got to see a shepherd minding his flock of goats that were foraging. As we neared the Aegean side we came across a number of farms with small apple orchards. The trees were laden with big red apples and some with green. To descend to the other side, we travelled through a number of villages to Agio Ioannis.
We finally arrive down at the beach which on one side are inns, tavernas and a couple of shops and the other is the beach and sea. No problem to park as there are only a few tourists on the beach. It’s 25 C and the breeze is light, a wide expanse of beach with hardly anyone on it. We bring our beach mats down with us, but don’t really use them much. The water is crystal clear and warm - right on! Along the shoreline we see collections of small smooth white, and tan pebbles which reminds M and T of pictures we’ve seen before.
We have a great afternoon enjoying the warm water, one of the more enjoyable swims we’ve had on this trip. J spends several hours swimming and checking out the fish that are swimming amongst and below us. J shouts out that he saw several schools of fish 100 score. It’s a great way to enjoy this part of Greece before we leave on Sunday to go north.
As we were traveling home we passed a number of trucks loaded down with the day’s picked apples and the workers heading home. We both remarked how this was the most curves we had ever encountered on a drive - didn’t count them, but the number was high. When we talk about curves, we’re talking about ones you have to slow way down to take because they are so sharp.
M laughs at T when he looks over at her while he’s washing the evening dishes (he’s become very proficient at washing and cleaning up after the meal is cooked) and she’s watching an old rerun of “The Nanny”. Yes, she’s so desperate for English TV that she’s subjecting herself to the dreadful nasal sound the actress uses as her New Yorker accent!!! Tonight we enjoy another movie - The Lord of the Rings. M has to commentate somewhat because T doesn’t know the background story. J wants to stay up late tonight to watch the entire movie - no way we say. Off to bed he goes and we watch the rest, but are up till 1:30AM before it’s done.
October 7 - Saturday - Our last full day here to enjoy rural Greece. We do laundry and get things organized for the next three nights in hotels en-route to Turkey. The weather is starting to change and the clouds are starting to move in, we’re told its supposed to rain later today. M and T leave J to hang while they go for another walk up to Markinitsa, this try trying to find the pathways instead of using the road. We are in luck, and manage to find a second pathway not far from where the one we caught the other day. This section of the path starts at the end of a driveway and continues past many houses and after about 20 min of continuous climb we come out at the main square. This was a much more enjoyable walk, no less strenuous though. The reward - yes, another cappuccino and M orders a piece of walnut cake - soaking in honey. It is very good. We asked the owner of the cafe, with an amazing view of the valley, if Baklava is a Greek dessert as we had not been to order it in restaurants. We were informed that baklava is Turkish. At home, we often see it in Greek restaurants.
After a nice timeout, we walk back down along the exact same pathways to the apt. It’s clouded over now and we get sprinkled on, just a bit.
As we have an outside grilling area in the terrace here, M tries to BBQ steaks for our last stay in apartments before we start 2 months of tours and hotels. M finds that working with old style charcoal is quite different than with the briquettes we get at home, so although it works somewhat he finishes off the steaks under the over broiler before serving them. Today we watch the movie about Odysseus, throwing us into the Greek Mythology world for a few hours.
October 8 - Sunday - Nikos meets us at 10:30 to pick up the keys for the apt and then we’re off to Thessaloniki. The drive takes us out of the mountain area through flat interior plains planted with lots of cotton as well as other crops already harvested. As we neared Thessaloniki, we drove through some hills. Thessaloniki is Greece’s second largest city and as we approach it, we can see how it sprawls with industry as well as housing. There’s also a large port . We are staying in a suburb of the city on the hills overlooking the city. The weather has changed and the breeze is brisk. We decide to go change into pants, first time in two months before we head out for a bite to eat. Next to our hotel, Nepheli Hotel, we find a taverna to have some lunch. We have our typical greek salad, which as a dressing only has olive oil and some other great eats - gyros - fabulous mouthwatering savory pork. Just writing about it, the mouth salivates!
T had read about a science museum and planetarium nearby, so after having a quick bite to eat, we go in search of it. We are in luck as there are a couple of films that we can get headsets for English translation: The History of Flight and The Stars of the Pharaoh. The History of Flight was right up J’s alley, as he loves talking about planes. The Stars of the Pharaoh was shown in the planetarium and talked all about the constellations and how the Egyptians used the stars are their guides. We learned that we get the 24-hour day, and the 365-day year, from them. We all found this interesting as we are going there in November and so we got some more insight into some Egyptian history.
October 10 - Monday - We leave to continue east to Kavalas, a coastal city. When we drive along, the traffic thins out. As we drive along, the topography changes to rolling hills, probably the greenest valley we’ve seen on our Greece travels. We are not that far from Bulgaria when we drive along. The mountains that run along the north of us have fresh snow on the highest elevations. It’s an enjoyable drive and the rain has mostly stopped once we have left Thessaloniki. It’s our first truly overcast day since mid Sept.
Kavalas is built along the hills that lead down to the water. It is good size, with a number of hotels. There are a number of tavernas along the promenade. The city is busy and negotiating the streets is fairly challenging with the double and triple parked vehicles abound. Typically with the four laned city road often only the middle two lanes are free flowing. The hotel is located on the beach, however, today is not a day to walk along it as the wind is quite nasty. We thought on a bright sunny day, the walk along the water would be awesome.
For lunch we drove to a nearby village and had another great tasting lunch. We found a bakery next door which had some fabulous desserts which reminded M and T of the bakeries we saw in Santorini the last time we were in Greece. We picked up a couple of things to have for coffee later. T went for a walk along the water sidewalk, well dressed with rain gear, while the guys hung out at the hotel with J doing some schoolwork.
We had dinner at the hotel bar, because the restaurant was only open for pre-arranged diners, so we were directed down there. We had dinner reminiscent of home, the guys had burgers and fries (with some Greek herbs) and T had a club sandwich, with pork instead of chicken. We all thoroughly enjoyed the meals.
October 11 - Tuesday - After breakfast at the hotel restaurant with a nice view of the harbor, J and T complete some of his French lesson while M gets some paperwork for our upcoming tour printed off. Our drive to our final stop in Greece is Alexondroupolis, about 40 km from the Turkish border. It’s takes a bit to get out of Kavalas as Navi was confused, but we figured it out and we were on our way. The highway is the main motorway to lead to Turkey, it isn’t very busy today, and in great shape. We travel with flat farmland on the right of us, next to the Aegean and mountains on the left, in some cases, high ones with fresh snow. We can see a number of rock quarries as well.
Finding this hotel is very easy - T has learned to copy the GPS coordinates down on the calendar to help with Navi because sometimes the street or hotel name is not included in the data base. This helped to make finding these hotels in the last few days very easy. Sight unseen and using Tripadvisor ratings, T has managed to find decent hotels when needed. Also, knowing which search engine to look for the best pricing has helped to secure some great places.
We have a laid back day - went to a local kebab shop for lunch and had some great gyros (they don’t pronounce the g). From there we went to the “Funky Cafe” and indeed it was funky. Both the tables and the seats moved when weight was applied, kind of hydraulic-lift-like. We enjoyed a cappuccino as the Greek coffee is instant - no thanks! J had some time running around on the grounds of the hotel, running his football plays and getting some exercise, M and T went to the hotel gym for a workout. Dinner was enjoyed in the restaurant at the hotel and then we had an early night, so we could be off early the next day as we head into Turkey.
