Greece – September 2005
Wednesday morning we headed for the airport for our flight from San Diego to Atlanta and then on to Athens Greece. The first part of the flight was uneventful. But as we approached Atlanta the weather was not cooperating. We were told that due to heavy rains, we would have to divert to Mobile. We arrived in Mobile and were among many airplanes sitting on the runway waiting to fly into Atlanta. While we sat there, they did gas up the plane. But we were not allowed off the airplane. After sitting there for several hours we resigned ourselves to the fact that we had missed our connecting flight. Finally we took off, and when we arrived in Atlanta we were told we would be helped in getting flights re-booked. The problem is, they had many planes that had been delayed, and not enough staff to help. We stood in a long line for hours. During that time, we took turns getting something to eat, and I was able to get in touch with my travel insurance to let them know that we had a trip interruption. I also was able to call the Marriott in Athens and cancel our reservation and the service that was suppose to meet our plane and transfer us to the hotel. We finally got to the head of the line. We were told that they could get us a hotel for the night, but that it was on the outskirts of Atlanta, and was in fact the last hotel room available. Everyone behind us would have to spend the night in the airport. We took it. As for re-booking us, that would have to be done in the morning. We took a taxi to the hotel and got there around midnight. We were exhausted and thankful for a bed.
Thursday morning found us back at the Atlanta airport. Things were looking up. Laura pulled her Travel agent info at the gate and was able to get confirmed seats on a flight to Athens. Others were not as lucky, we talked to people who were told it would be 2 more days before they would get out. Our original plans had us spending the first night in Athens and then boarding a cruise ship for a 3 day Greek Island Cruise, before returning to Athens. We had already missed our first day in Athens, and realized that we were going to arrive in Athens too late to catch the ship before it left port. Laura called the cruise line and let them know that we would meet the ship in the first port of Mykonos.
The flight went well. We both slept some during the flight.. They fed us a nice dinner about an hour after takeoff and a light breakfast about an hour before we landed in Athens. We arrived at the airport, bags were located and we rushed through passport control and customs and out into the arrival hall.. If things had been going to plan we would have been met by a driver and taken to Athens to the hotel but this is Friday morning instead of Thursday. There is no driver, no hotel and we have to find transportation to the island of Mykonos. Laura found a travel agency and they told us that there were no more airplane seats available, and then sold us the last two tickets for the high speed ferry from Rafina to Mykonos. She gave us directions to where we could catch the bus for the 40 minute trip to Rafina. We caught the bus and enjoyed an interesting tour of the Greek countryside. We arrived at the port with time to spare, so we stopped for lunch in a waterfront cafe, one of many that bordered the waterfront. I had a Greek salad and Laura had shrimp. We even sampled the Greek beer Mythos. Good way to recharge the batteries. We boarded the ferry and found our seats. It took about 2 hours to reach port with just a quick stop at one other island. We got a taxi and were taken to the ship, which had just pulled in. What a relief. They were expecting us and we still had a room. We checked in and then unpacked. Laura decided to visit the town of Mykonos, I was beat and had a headache so I stayed on board. When Laura came back from her shopping/sightseeing we had dinner in the dining room and explored the ship. We turned in early.
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| Lindos, Rhodes Acropolis |
Saturday
The ship cruised all night to Rhodes. Our cabin, which turned out to be on the lowest level of the ship with a porthole view, was noisy. So sleep, while it did come, was episodic. We got up at 6 am to have breakfast and meet the tour group. We were loaded onto a bus with other English speakers. We took a drive into the city of Rhodes and then walked down from the top of the old walled city to the waterfront. It was interesting see where the Knights of Saint John had built their hospital and the reconstructed palace of the Grand Master. We also saw the exterior of the Turkish Suleiman mosque. Then it was back on the bus and off to the town of Lindos which was about 40 minutes away. Lindos was a quaint little town with lots of shops ready to sell to the tourists.; We were mostly interested in buying water or other things cool to drink as it was about 96 degrees. Laura climbed the 200 plus stairs to the Acropolis, I waited below for her. Back on the bus and then a stop at a pottery shop on our way back. We returned to the ship for lunch about 1:30. Laura and a young woman she met last night are out at a local beach for a swim. The ship gets underway at 7pm for Patmos about 111 nautical miles away. I hope they get back or there will be more interesting adventures to write about. It is 5 pm and I hear a beer calling me so I think I will sign off for now.
Sunday
Lau
ra did return yesterday with minutes to spare before we sailed. Had dinner in the dining room with 2 sisters from New York. This morning we arrived in Patmos. It is a quiet little town with cute shops, which were open even though it is Sunday. The church around the corner is full of worshippers and there is Gregorian chants coming from inside, and it echos around the city. We did a little shopping and people watching. Only have a few hours here. The most famous thing of the city is a monastery on top of the mountain, and there was a tour up to it, but we decided not to take it. Supposedly it is where John the Baptist lived for many years and wrote. We made our way back to the ship had lunch and then arrived in Kusadasi, Turkey. It is most famous for the ruins of Esphesus which are a few miles outside the city. And supposedly Mary (mother of Jesus) lived there until her death. We wanted to see the ruins, but all of the tours took the entire stay at the ruins, so instead we hopped a taxi with another couple and went to the ruins on our own. The ruins were pretty spectacular. We did a self tour, skipped Mary's house and got back to Kusadasi with an hour to wander the streets of the town. It is a pretty waterfront town, with lots of cute shops. Bought a shawl and some Turkish delight. Boarded the ship for our sail back to Athens
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| Harbor in Patmos |
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| Esphesus |
Monday
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| Acropolis, Athens |
Arrived in Athens early this morning. Laura had arranged for a driver to pick us up and take us back to our hotel in Athens. He was late arriving, so we had an hour wait in the terminal, but he took us to the Marriott. We spent the rest of the day seeing the sights. We wandered through the Plaka (old town area), looking at shops and sampling food. Had lunch at a great little streetside cafe, went to the acropolis (steep climb), and ended the day having dinner at a restaurant which was just below the acropolis. We good look up and there it was. Laura found a dog in the Plaka area to play ball with, so she got her puppy fix. There are lots of stray dogs in Athens, but they all have collars on and everyone feeds them. If a dog gets sick, then someone will take it to a doctor. The dogs are mostly friendly.
Tuesday
Today we start a 3 day tour that Laura booked before we left. We join the tour here in Athens first thing in the morning. We are taken by van to Delphi, there are several other people with us, but we understand that they are ultimately going to another destination, so we are told that after the tour of Delphi we will be left at a hotel for the night and tomorrow another van will pick us up to go to our second destination, which is Meteora. When we arrive in Delphi we are taken on a tour of the ruins. There is also a museum which houses a lot of the things that were found while excavating the ruins. Delphi is built on the side of a mountain and the views from their into the valley below and clear to the gulf of Corinth. After our tour we were left at a hotel which was built on the hillside and from our bedroom window we had the same magnificent view. We walked into the town, which is really a cute town, explored the shops and stopped at a restaurant for a beer and some mousaka (which is an eggplant dish with a tomato sauce and cheese, kind of like lasagna without the pasta). Mousaka has become a favorite dish of ours. After dinner we went back to the hotel and Laura went for a swim in the hotel pool.
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| Meteora |
Wednesday
We were picked up by the new tour guide. The group they had with them had just come from Olympia and now they were headed to Meteora, with us. The drive took us across some plains to the town of Kalampaka. We checked into our hotel there, had dinner with some of the group and explored the town.
Thursday found us on the bus traveling up the switchback roads to get to the top of the cliffs to allow us to visit the monasteries of Meteora. It only took about a half hour to make the drive. The large monastery that we visited called the Great Meteora Monastery or the Monastery of the Transfiguration, has a population of 6 monks. It was a bit of a climb; a total of 320 steps to get both up and back. You could not take any pictures except outside of the building. The chapel was beautiful, just filled from wall to wall with vivid religious painting. We then visited St. Stephens, a monastery which was the home to many nuns. Their chapel was still being painted since it had only been built a few years earlier. It was interesting to watch 2 painters from Italy paint the fresco, copying the patterns from the older monasteries.
After the visit to the monasteries, we headed the bus back to Athens and back to the Marriott hotel for the night..
Friday
We arose with a few hours before we had to head to the airport. So it was off in a taxi to see the Agora, an ancient market. It was another archaeological site which was located just below the Acropolis to the northwest. We wandered through the ruins, visited an archaeological museum and then headed back into town. We walked through an area of little shops called the Monastiraki. We saw a lot of little antique shops (junk shops?) There were also a several streets which were called the Athens Flea Market. We resisted the shopping opportunities with the exception of a Kodak Photo store who sold us a new battery charger since our one from the US, short circuited and started smoking in the room and it was a non smoking room. Don’t know why it did it since we had it on a voltage converter.
We took a cab from the hotel to the airport. The driver took us the coast route which was more scenic. So that made the 45 minute trip a little more enjoyable. About Greek scenery – it reminds me of Southern California or Arizona. It is very dry, no grass to speak of, instead scrub brush and plenty of rocks and open soil. In towns you often find a vacant lot with a pile of construction debris – concrete, wood, metal scraps, piled along the roadside or being used as fill.
We flew to Satorini without any problems, landed and found a cab to take us to the hotel. The driver loaded us up and then went to find some more paying customers. He found 2 girls and tossed their bags on the top of the cab and off we went. It was about a 20 minute cab ride where we learned that the lines on the roads are just a suggestion and a loud horn is important to safe driving.
Santorini, Greece
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| Our hotel in Santorini |
We awoke and headed up to a very traditional Greek breakfast. Then shopping opportunities awaited up on the twisting, narrow walkways and streets of the town. We had to be back to catch a bus at 4 PM for the port. That was not a problem, when we arrived at the port at about 5:00; we learned that the fast ferry was going to be about an hour late. We sat on the pier and then when the ferry arrived joined the struggling masses to get on the ferry. I think some people would trample their mothers to get to the front of the line. It was crazy.
The ferry trip lasted about 2 hours; we landed in the port of Herakalion on the island of Crete at 8:30 PM. We looked around for a driver from Hertz or at least a taxi driver to take us to the Hertz office. No driver and all the taxis were taken. We are standing there wondering what have we done to irritate the travel gods, when a driver came looking for Mr. Gordon to take to the Hertz office. We explained that we were not Mr. Gordon but we needed a ride there also. He called his office and did a lot of yelling on the phone and then agreed to take us to Hertz. The main downtown office closed at 9 PM and we arrived at 9:03. He sat in front of it, honking his horn and then getting on the phone again several times talking to who knows who, when he finally announced he was taking us to the airport to the Hertz office there. To make a long story shorter, it was open, we got a car and headed out to drive the 80 Km to the town where the time share is located. We found the town, stopped in a mini mart to buy some things to make dinner with since we had not eaten since about 2 PM and it was now almost 11 PM. We got directions; we had stopped about a half mile before the timeshare location. So with only a few missed turns, several more gray hairs and a lot of luck we were in the timeshare, where we hooked up with our friends, Myra and Malcolm and unpacked by midnight.
One funny story to report. After we got the keys to the rental car we headed out into the parking lot to get our car. There was a row of motorcycles parked near the entrance to the airport. The motorcycle at the end of the row was being devoured by several stray dogs. We are not sure why, but they had eaten the seat and were now pulling on the chains of the cycle, one dog on each side, using the motorcycle like a pull toy. It was funny to watch, but I'm sure that when the owner came out to get his cycle he wasn't going to be too happy. The dogs were having soooo much fun though!
Sunday
It is nice to unpack again and to be settled for a few days. We took the day at a very leisurely pace. We walked down to the beach which is located about a ½ mile from the timeshare. We walked along the beach about a mile. It was nice, cool breeze, warm sun, only thing missing was a frozen concoction or two. Then we walked back up through the tourist shops past the timeshare and back. Malcolm and I stopped off in a sports bar for a beer while Laura and Myra continued visiting the shopping opportunities. I received an education on the differences between rugby and football while watching the South Africa team beat the Samoan team quite badly.
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| Our timeshare on Crete |
About the timeshare - It is a very pleasant place. There are 2 pools on the site. One is the quiet pool which is right off our front door. There is a small restaurant and several bars. It is getting to the end of the tourist season so that may be the reason that it is so quiet. Mostly older couples and a few young families with children but not many teens are present; which is not an unpleasant condition. The unit is fairly small. It was a living room which is 8 X 10 ft; a single bedroom 10 X 10 ft; a kitchen/dining area of 6 X 8 ft and a bath and toilet. It is furnished simply but comfortably. There is an outdoor patio with a lattice sun screen cover with a table and chairs. We are located on the 2nd floor (by US standards) so our patio has some privacy. The only thing that is taking some getting used too is the square toilets. I’m sorry this maybe a little too personal but when buttocks are used to an oval, it takes some doing to use a square. Also, Greece is like Mexico, toilet paper is not flushed. It clogs up their septic system. So all paper goes into a closed trash can which is picked up daily by the maid service which takes some getting used too, also. For entertainment there is a small color TV in the living room with a DVD player, a CD player in the bedroom. We have internet access (of course we do, or you would not be reading this) but we have to go to the lobby to use the computers there or to link into the wireless net.
Monday
Today we ventured out in the car to a two towns down the road from us. We sat at a table in a pier side cafe having iced coffee and colas while we watched the myriad of small fishes swim about near the pier wall and under the fishing boats- small fish about the size of neon tetras, being chased by little larger fishes, being chased by even larger ones until the top of the food chain there was two fish about the size of the palm of my hand.
We then drove on to the next town found parking which is an accomplishment in it’s self; then walked down into the port area. We found an antique car show which in addition to a selection of US Army WW II jeeps and a German armored personnel carrier, had on display a 1954 Chevy Bel-Air. That was a surprise since most of the show was Fiat and other European automobiles. We had lunch at another pier side café and then toured back to the timeshare.
Tuesday
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| Samaria Gorge Malcolm, Myra & George |
Today we were adventurous. It started with a two hour bus trip up through the mountains and down the other side followed by an hour long ferry trip. One of the highlights of the trip Laura had planned was to hike the Samaria Gorge from the top to the bottom which was a 5-6 hour hike. We did talk her into the short walk where you go up the Gorge from the bottom up about a total of 2 miles and then back. That was a good thing. It was another warm day and much of the walk was in the sun. The trail was rocky and you had to be careful of your step. Malcolm tried twice to fall and he is an experienced trekker. Laura developed several large blisters and was pretty tired by the time the hike was finished. She got back to the ferry landing and ordered a sandwich and beer and then headed for the beach. It was a stone beach which did create some difficulty when returning to shore but that did not faze her. She swam, floated and basically rested her weary bones in the Libyan Sea for a half hour before we had to re-board the ferry for the return trip. We arrived at the timeshare at 7 PM after an 11 hour adventure. We got cleaned up and rested a bit before venturing out for dinner and a brief shopping excursion before returning to the timeshare for bed.
Wednesday
Today is a quiet day; taking time to recharge our batteries. Laura is down at the pool with the Scotties and I am up in the room composing this. Nothing planned other that relaxing and basking in the sun. We have plans to attend a special dinner at a Cretan farm this evening.
Dinner was very interesting and very good at Agreco. First we had a tour of the farm showing us the old methods of harvesting the olives, grapes and wheat. Then we walked up through the olive orchards and vineyard to the vegetable garden. After looking at all the zucchini, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and herbs, we were escorted to the farmhouse’s private chapel. After that we were taken to the tasting room/gift shop, where we were given samples of Raki, which is a very strong local distilled liquor. We were allowed some time after making our purchases to sit and admired the sunset. They then called us in for dinner – first course was 3 types of homemade bread with olive oil for dipping or soft goat cheese for spreading and a type of olive. There was also stuffed grape leaves. Second course consisted of a dry bread with bits of tomato and two types of olives. We also had a plate of oven roasted potatoes cooking with tomato, green beans and eggplant. Third course was Greek salad – bits of tomato, cucumber, red onion and some unidentifiable weeds. Fourth course was bits of roasted lamb. Fifth course was oven roasted chicken. Sixth course was a variety of sweets and cookies and also a shot of ouzo. Seventh course was fresh fruit consisting of watermelon, green and red grapes, pears, and a nectarine. Dinner also included a carafe of red wine and bottles of water. This entire meal took over 2 hours to consume and was done in a very picturesque setting – a patio covered with grape vines in fruit overlooking the olive orchards looking out onto the countryside with little lights twinkling in the distance. Soft music could be heard in the background.
It was a perfect setting for romance; a nice place to celebrate our 40th anniversary.
http://www.grecotel.com/crete/agreco/welcome_1598.htm
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| Agreco Farm |
http://www.grecotel.com/crete/agreco/welcome_1598.htm
Thursday
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| Knossos, Crete |
Today was another road trip, we loaded up the car and took off for the 50 Km drive to the archaeological site of the Palace of Knossos. This was the source of several legends. First was the legend of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth. The next was the legend of the man and his son who made wings to escape their island prison and the son, Ictus flew too close to the sun and the wax melted which held the feathers and he fell into the sea. The site had been partially reconstructed so you could see where certain things where believed to have been. It was amazing since this area had been active since 2000 years before Christ. After spending an hour on a guided tour, we stopped for a bite and then headed back towards the timeshare.
We stopped at Bali, a small beach town about halfway home for a bit of a rest. Laura and Myra brought swimsuits which they changed into and we had a cold drink and then the ladies had a swim. They reported that the water was warm and that the waves were a little more powerful than they had expected. Both had been bowled over getting out to the deeper water.
We then returned to the hotel for what has been the routine – a little rest, get cleaned up and dinner about 8:30 PM. We returned to our room for a glass of sweet wine and some pastries for dessert.
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| Rethymnon Harbor |
Up again and on the road to the port town south of us, Rethymnon. Myra had purchased a jacket there when we visited it earlier this week and needed to return it as it was sun damaged. We found the shop and made the exchange with no problem. We also found the shop of a local woodcarver who made some quite lovely wooden objects of art. We also returned to the waterfront café for a cold drink and to feed the fish some of our dried bread. Shopping opportunities abounded as we walked through part of the old town which we had not visited last time. We found our car and had a picnic on sandwiches which we had made previously and cans of soda.
Everyone is at the pool trying to get the last bit of sun for the day while I compose this up in the room. Tonight the timeshare is having a special dinner with Greek dancers, which we will attend. We have only eaten here once for breakfasts, normally we made our own breakfast in the room or eat in one of the local restaurants for lunch or dinner. Prices are reasonable and I don’t think we have had a bad meal yet.
Tomorrow, Laura and I will start out journey home. We have a 1 PM flight to Athens and will leave Athens on Sunday morning, arriving in San Diego around 9 PM. We hope that things go a little smoother on the homeward trip than they did on the outbound trip. So this will be my last trip report until we are safe and sound in Chula Vista.
Saturday
Time flies when you are having fun, they say. This morning while having our farewell breakfast with the Scotties, we were discussing that. It did not seem like we had been on Crete a week nor did it seem like it had been 2 years since our last adventures together. Now we get to start planning for our next adventure. We said our goodbyes and it was off to the airport with only a few missed turns when we tried to find a gas station to fill up the rental car prior to turning it in. The flight to Athens was smooth and uneventful as was the taxi ride to the hotel..
We dropped our bags at the Marriott and caught another cab to Lycabettus Hill which is the highest point within the city of Athens. There is a restaurant there where we had a cool drink and looked at the city all around us. We then rode the cable car back down the hill and walked back to the Plaka for dinner. We were looking for the same restaurant that we had eaten at during our last visit but missed it by half a block. The place we stopped at was fine just not as entertaining as the other.
Sunday
The travelers had a hearty breakfast; the taxi driver picked us up early to take us to the Athens airport. He was concerned that because it was election day that there might be delays. Fortunately he was wrong. We got checked in, bags dropped off and with only a little wait were able to board the plane which departed at about 12:50 pm.. We landed in Atlanta at 5:30 pm which was about 12 hours later. We passed through immigration and customs without difficulty and rechecked our bags for San Diego.
The flight left at 8 PM and landed in San Diego at about 9:45 PM, a flight of 4 ¾ hours. We were able to claim 2 of our bags fairly quickly but had to wait for quite a while until Laura found that the 3rd bag was sitting by the Baggage office, it must have come in on an earlier flight. All bags in hand, Kim and James picked us up and we took them home and then made our way to home, the Schnauzers and eventually bed.
Second thoughts –
The trip home was not as eventful as the trip to Athens. That certainly weighed on our minds as we headed home.
The people we met while in Greece were wonderful. The Greeks went out of their way to make you feel welcome. They were helpful even when they did not speak English. We met and visited with other tourists from Australia and from Canada. All were nice people. We did observe the strong feelings that some Greeks hold for the Turks, everyone has their prejudices.
Driving was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Most of our driving was on a two lane road or the two lane freeway. In town, it got a little exciting at times as the streets were narrow and Greek drivers firmly believe that traffic laws are a suggestion. They park in the middle of the road but it’s OK because they put on their flashers. No passing zone, no problem, just flash your lights, sound your horn and around you go. A one lane road is really a 2 lane because a driver drives to the far right almost on the shoulder of the road which allows the others to drive with only a little bit of their car over the center line.
One of the tour guides said that the Phoenicians had cut down most of the trees on the hills and mountains of Greece for their ships by 1200 AD. As a result of this deforestation, the climate changed and it became warmer and drier. While we were there the forest fires which had been intentionally set were being brought under control. It was unfortunate that this was going on.
Well, I think that just about wraps it up, we are home safe and sound, still a bit weary but getting back into the swing of things. The laundry has been done, the mail sorted and the Schnauzers are content. So until next time, Love to all from George and Laura
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