Finally getting back to this blog! This was a number of years ago but was a great trip……
Also instead of posting multiple parts I’m posting one BIG trip journal. Hope it’s not too long!!
Once we could finally travel again I managed to get in two great trips in 2022….was so good to be able to travel again! Will get working on those soon.
NOTE: Where hotels and restaurants are still in business, I’ve included a link to their website.
May 29 Sat
Arrived in London (Gatwick) @ 9AM. Flight was an hour and a half late leaving Vancouver.
OK flight (Air Transat)….food was awful. Dinner was chicken in a sauce with pineapple, beans and potatoes…weird. Breakfast was a “Bacon and Tomato Ketchup Bloomer”…..which was basically a wibbly, cold bacon sandwich with ketchup, just yuck.
Holiday Inn. Same as last time. Great for the price.
It’s raining and I did not pack an umbrella. Just after 12 (noon) we headed into London. Caught the Gatwick Express (23L each return vs 11L each for the regular train). Approx a ½ to Victoria Station.
British Museum was our goal…..to see all the Greek stuff that we wouldn’t see in Greece!! Elgin Marbles etc. Pouring rain when we arrived so splurged on a taxi (16L) to the museum. Had lunch at the Museum Tavern right across the street. Linds and I had lunch there a couple years ago. Ken had an English breakfast, I had the sausage special, which was bangers and mash. With a pint each the bill was 20L. Good deal and an excellent lunch.
Just love the British Museum. The building itself is great. Went to see all the stuff from the Acropolis….Elgin Marbles, Neriads, Caryitids etc. and all the Cyclidic history and the Rosetta stone. Great afternoon!
Stopped raining so we decided to head to Trafalgar Square. Stopped at a little café out of the wind in Shaftsbury…..cappa and latte 5L.
Super fundraiser happening with painted elephants all over different areas in the city. Each one sponsored by a local TV personality. Had wandered down Neal St (near Covent Garden) and a few other great little alleys around there. Found the Neal St. elephant by Patricia Hughes (?). Really very cute, all rainbow stripes.
Ended up totally twisted around and going the opposite direction we wanted. Walked along Drury Lane and around more very pretty alleys. Found another elephant in St. Martin Lane….pretty green and purple, don’t know what it was for.
Very windy and looked like it was going to rain again but we decided to walk down the Mall to Buckingham Palace. Managed to catch the changing of the guard….fun. And a little show of some sort at the Royal Stables.
Ended up walking all the way back to Victoria Station!! Quite chilly though. Picked up a little purse for Cadence that says I “heart” London. Got some snacks for later and caught the train at 7 and back to Gatwick.
It’s been a looooonng day! Ken was frozen so had a nice warm bath, made some tea, ate our snacks/dinner and to bed. Alarm set for 5:30am
May 30 Sun
Did not sleep much at all, not more than an hour or so a couple of times. Finally gave up and got up at 4AM. Made coffee and read until the alarms went off.
Caught the shuttle at 6:30, checked in for our Easyjet flight and off to have a big breakfast.
Flight was about a ½ hour late leaving. Took just over 3 hours so arrived at 3PM Athens time. Very different weather here!!! HOT and nice and sunny.
Took a taxi (33E) to the Plaka Hotel. No view of the Acropolis from our room but we do have one of the mountain/Lykavitta Hill??. OK room, pretty basic but clean and a nice little deck overlooking the busy main street.
Changed and headed right up to our rooftop bar….spectacular 360 degree view of the city and all the sites. Had a drink and off to explore the Plaka and have a late, late lunch. Ken had fried potato something, I had the spinach pie, more like spinach rolls but really good. Very delicious oily tzatziki.
Wandered all over the Plaka and part of Monastiraki. Definitely the touristy area with many, many shops, most selling all the same stuff. I did get an evil eye Pandora charm (35E) and bought a cheap little eye bracelet for Cadence. We did buy 2 I “heart” Athens mugs for our morning coffee in the room…..will get to check our my spiffy water boiler thing in the morning for the Starbucks VIA coffees I bought.
Went to Roman Forum and Hadrians Library……so hot but a great places to wander around and thru the ruins.
Had a very late, for us, dinner around 9 at a place called Yspia something or other in Mitropoleo Square. I little out of the way but excellent food and not crazy busy. I had a really good moussaka, Ken had pizza, a glass of white wine and beer (18E), also came with a shot of Metaxa for Ken and a cherry liqueur for me.
Back to the hotel around 10 and up to the roof for night caps….the view at night is unreal……the Acropolis and Parthenon all lit up and other various sites around the city! Just WOW!
Athens seems to be a real mishmash mess of a city…..not in a bad way though! Amazing ancient ruins, old buildings, lots of 50’s style ones and brand new one. Some neat and tidy and some not so.
Some of the streets are pretty mess too…..paper, garbage etc. Many great little shopping streets and alleys and tons of restaurants near the hotel. More to explore tomorrow!
Very tired tonight….I hope I can sleep!
May 31 Mon
Up early as usual but had a much better sleep…..at least 4 hours in a row I think. I did take a benadryl, which helped.
The little water boiler thing worked great!! So managed to get a couple of cups in even before breakfast, which didn’t start until 8.
Good breakfast at the hotel, mini-ish buffet. Scrambled eggs, weiner or sausage type things, fruit (canned), various yogurts, cereals, toast (make your own) and some delicious cherry preserves/jam.
Headed up to the Acropolis around 8:30. Very hot even that early! The walk up was not nearly as bad as some people had said….quite pleasant really. Thought we were early enough to beat but the crowds but apparently not.
The site is pretty fantastic. We followed Rick Steves book which was really good. The ruins are incredible….not sure what else one can say about them. The history associated to this site is all you need to know. Just amazing that it has survived, or so much of it, for so long. Lots of major restoration work being done and it was fun watching them work away.
Was told a story about the two young boys that took down the Nazi flag at night and their freedom fighting efforts during the occupation…..cannot even begin to imagine what people went thru.
Just an amazing place…..hated to leave because you could easily spend hours up there, so much to see! And the views were fantastic but it was getting really crowded and really hot! Wasn’t even really sunny. Sadly we passed on the Acropolis Museum just because walking down would have meant walking back up!!
Stopped on the way down for a drink at a little bar and chatted with a big Vietnamese family. The grandpa was 83 and traveling with 2 of his 5 childrens and their families. Told us he had something to do with inventing the transistor radio back in the 1950’s. He moved to Paris and still lives there now. Very entertaining, chatted with them for almost an hour. Very well traveled….thanks to Grandpa they said.
Was 12:30 by then and decided to head over to the ancient agora (incl in the 12E Parthenon ticket). Super site with the very well “rebuilt” in the 1950’s Stoa of Attalos and the Temple of Hephaistos. Great site with much in excellent condition. Thought we’d check out the Agora Museum (also included in ticket and to get out of the heat a bit). Very interesting great little museum that takes you back to 3200BC
Jetlag and the heat was kicking in so time for lunch. Really good, just at one of the sort of touristy joints in the Plaka. Ken had a bacon cheeseburger…..huge and with a cheese-y sauce something like melted cheese whiz, but really good. I had the roasted halumi with oyster mushrooms and grilled tomatoes…..really good. 2 pints of beer 28E.
Wandered a bit more, in an out of shops, trying to avoid the souvenir ones. Bought our ferry tickets for Naxos (33.50E each) for the 2nd. I think it’s the slow boat one….must be at the port by 7AM, ferry leaves at 7:30 and we don’t arrive in Naxos until 12:30. Back to the hotel around 3 for a bit of a nap.
Up and out around 6 trying to find a restaurant recommended by Rick, but no luck. Ended up at a place called Extapini, which was a nice surprise!! Excellent food and atmosphere. Delicious saganaki to start. Ken had the pork gyro…..just huge, way too much. I had the stuffed chicken breast (v.g). Dessert was honey cake and ouzo. Had a bottle of Sigala Santorini White (22E), which was very good. Total bill 46E.
Wandered the streets a bit……great people watching here. Gets busier here as the night wears on!! Back to the hotel rooftop for a drink and to chat with whoever was up there. The Acropolis all lit up at night is just spectacular. Still quite warm even at 11PM.
Athens is a city that has so much potential. Many wonderful ruins, churches, old and ancient buildings and many other buildings that are derelict, which is just a shame. The city is not “dirty”, just run down and seems uncared for. Some of the buildings that are falling apart could be just beautiful with some restoration. A fellow from the hotel said the sad state of some buildings is a long story…..mostly ones of estates and taxes.
No plans now for tomorrow….have decided not to do the all day boat trip to Hydra. 7AM to 7PM is just too long of a day. Lots of museums to see, the gardens and churches too.
June 1 Tues
Did not sleep well last night…..what the heck!! I am sooooo tired! Finally at 3AM I got up and took a benadryl. Was still up at 6:30 but didn’t feel too bad even after only 3 hours sleep.
Very hot this AM, nice and sunny.
Made coffee and rushed up to the roof to try and get sunrise over the Acropolis pics but was just a bit too late!
Took lots of pics of the area around the hotel. Many, many buildings in various stages of disrepair, dereliction and renovation. Just because there is scaffolding and netting around a building doesn’t mean things are getting done…..one building has both, covered in ivy so it’s been in the works for while.
I really love Athens but looking around at all of this and it’s beautiful treasures makes me think of it as a “sad” city…….just begging for some love. So many of these buildings would be, or could be, lovely with some TLC. I guess though that is what makes the city!
Had breakfast and had more coffee on the roof and just enjoyed the view.
Up to Syntagma and Kolonaki. Walked around the gardens, very pretty in some places but pretty scruffy in others…..another example of something that could be absolutely stunning with a little more care. Why don’t they do it? Just cutting the grass would have made such a difference. Beautiful flowers and some spectacular trees, lovely covered walkways, ponds and lots of benches to sit and enjoy.
Kolonaki is the “ritzy” area of Athens. Cartier, Hermes and all the other designers have set up shop. Very pretty treelined streets with lots of cafes. Would be a great area to stay if we come back.
Still a bit too early for lunch so walked back to the parliament buildings. We caught the changing of the guard! Was fun to watch the high stepping, pompomed show. They are really quite the uniforms…..should look it up after to see why.
Very crowded everywhere we went today. Traffic seemed 10x worse and much noisier….definitely away from the pretty much pedestrian Plaka.
Had lunch at the Antalia Café…..really good! Ken had a club sandwich, I had the dolmathes and tzatziki and a lavash type bread. A beer and a glass of wine 26E.
Decided to just head back to the hotel. Was really hot and Ken not feeling so good so he had a nap, I made a cup of coffee and went up on the roof and read until around 3…..too hot even in the covered area so I went and had a nap too!!
Ken felt better after his nap and so did I….just don’t understand why sleeping is such a problem!
Dinner a bit later (8:30). Found Hermoine Taverna not to far down the street…..really pretty place with a huge outdoor patio covered in lights and tons of plants and flowers. I had lamb done in clay pot with potatoes, Ken had veal in a clay pot, a ½ litre bottle of Moschifitori (sp?) wine 36E. Excellent! Packed up and got all organized for tomorrow morning. 5AM wake up call…yuck! They’re going to have a continental breakfast for us at 5:45, how nice since it normally doesn’t start until 8. Cab will pick us up at 6:30
June 2 Wed
Slept better-ish…..but up well before the 5AM wake up call.
Had our breakfast, taxi was on time (6AM! And 29E to the port). Just over a ½ hour drive.
Very busy place. Many ferries and a couple of huge cruise ships.
On the ferry around 7 and found what we thought was a good spot. Was great for leaving the port and watching all the activity but once we hit open water it got way to windy to stay there. Had a nice walk around….saw the “club seats” and business class….nice. Coffees and donuts/spinach pies for a snack.
It was a very long ferry ride 5+ hours. Not terribly scenic until we got about 3 hours out of Athens then we saw lots of islands but not sure which ones. Didn’t get terribly close to any of them. They looked very dry and brown with a few white buildings here and there, can’t say it looked like any beach-ie type places.
Passed a couple of big cruise ships but not many others, not even ferries.
Arrived at Paros at 12. Looks like a great place. The port is Parikia (sp?) but we did see Naoussa as we sailed off to Naxos.
Arrived in Naxos just before 1. Millions of hotel people meet the ferries waving their hotel signs and yelling….probably a better deal than what we got but oh well.
Quite the hike to the National Car Rental office…..it is NOT right at the pier but that said we got a good look around the Chora, or Naxos town. Such a pretty place. Tons of shops, cafes and restaurants. Very busy place. It’s hot here but not stifling like Athens.
Got our little itty bitty car, a Daewoo in bright green. Left the rental place and immediately got lost! Did find our way back onto the highway the long way around. Saw a couple of places we’d looked at to stay, Liani’s was one. Not as close to town as advertised so glad we didn’t pick it. Not far but certainly not within walking distance so would have needed the car anyway.
Finikas is quite aways from town but what a little gem this place is. People are really nice, the place is pretty new. Very clean, big rooms, nice bathroom. Free internet! Beautiful pool and a great view of the beach. Sort of a town or village I guess….Pyrgaki.
The beach in its natural form is pretty rocky but trucks and tractors are getting it ready for “the season”. They grade it and remove all the big rocks that wash up during winter…..in some places it was pretty nice and sandy.
Nice little bar and restaurant, there’s also a little bar next door, other than that not too much around, certainly not within walking distance. But I think it will be nice here away the from crowds etc.
Headed to the bar for a snack. Ken had fried cheese balls (v.g.) I had tzitziki and bread. Sat down by the pool and read for a bit but really windy and when the sun ducked behind a cloud not terribly warm! Back to the room for a bit of nap and to update my journal.
Just had dinner here tonight. Ken had the special which was “pastistios”, kind of like lasagna, I had souvlaki, glass of wine for me, Ken had coffee and pie (apricate tarti pasta flora!). 28.70E All was excellent. I think tomorrow we’ll have breakfast then head out to find a mini mart to stock up on goodies and maybe lunch stuff to have around the pool…..would be nice to do that. We’ve got 5 days to explore.
June 3 Thurs
Up around 6:30. Took a Nyquil sleeping thing, which helped get a much needed good nights sleep.
Beautiful outside. We don’t get the AM sun on our deck so a bit cool but nice for coffee. Breakfast not until 8:30. As soon as the sun came over the building it warmed up quite nicely. Still breezy though. Had our VIA coffees…..really quite good. So glad I got that water boiler! And our mugs in Athens. Just sat and read and enjoyed the view.
We have a little owl in the tree in front of us!! So cute.
The Med looks beautiful and we have a nice view across the way of Paros.
A little tour around the building and grounds, which are really nice. Instead of the typical Cyclidic white and blue they have used all local stone (sort of yellow-ish), marble (also local….who knew!) and bricks to create the same colour scheme of the surrounding landscape. All the wood railings, patio covers and shutters are painted green. It all blends in really well and is lovely. Many flowers and some palms. The pool is really beautiful.
After breakfast we went for a walk down on the beach. Very rocky and also lots of sand. The trucks and tractors are grating through it to get it in better shape for the summer. In winter and spring the sea gets very rough and brings in all the rocks. Some are pretty good size but most are biggish pebbles….really quite pretty. The sea settles down around this time of year so the beaches stay pretty nice until the “Meltemi” starts to blow in late August…..must be like the Mistral in France.
Definitely not much around here…..the beach looks like it goes on for miles. The odd house here and there but nothing else.
Sat around the pool for a bit then off to find some lunch. Ate at Faro’s just down the road 5 minutes by car. I had Greek salad and dolmas, Ken had cheese pies and fried potatoes, split a mythos and each had Greek coffees 23E. The coffee is very strong and “earthy” tasting. You just sip it or it puckers your mouth. They ask if you want it sweet…..you say yes, no or a little.
Back to relax until dinner. Ken snoozed, I read and loaded some pictures. Great afternoon.
Headed out for dinner around 8. Found a place along the road on the way to Kastraki. It doesn’t have an English name on the sign or cards so something like “Tabepna AEiwtiooa”. Very good and very busy! I had the beef in tomato with spicy yogurt, basmati rice. Ken had the roast pork with a honey mustard glaze and roast potatoes. Glass of wine each and “nescafes” 26.40E Excellent!! And lots of cats for entertainment! Great place….might have to come back.
Home and to bed. What a great day of doing not much!
June 4 Fri
Terrible night for me…..ate way too much I think and suffered for it. Still felt kind of crappy this morning…..didn’t stop me from eating breakfast though did it???
Can’t see Paros this AM. Many clouds over the mountains so no sunrise either. But it’s not as windy this morning, so that’s good.
By the time we’d finished breakfast the sun had came out and warmed up nicely but it didn’t stay that way for long. Mostly clouded over and quite chilly….definitely needed a sweater.
Left for Naxos town around 10:30. Took about ½ hour. Totally different weather…..really nice and sunny and warm. Did not need the sweaters.
What a beautiful place it is. Lots of “blue” doors and shutters. Many shops, some selling really unique things. Lots of galleries and of course a ton of restaurants and cafes. Love the narrow little streets and alleys…..some barely passable because of restaurant seating, crates of vegetables etc…..just fantastic! And the colours!! White, blue, bright pink and red geraniums, lots of greenery.
Got a cute “evil eye” xmas ornament for Bev….the guy wrote Naxos in Greek on it for me. Then I found a shop that had handmade, hand painted “whirligigs” he called them but they’re really spinning tops…..so pretty to be my ornament from here. He too wrote Naxos in Greek on it. Ken bought some nice cotton pants.
After wandering the little streets we headed down toward the marina and the zillion cafes along the waterfront for coffee and break. Such a great place to people watch!! Ken had the chocolate soufflé, which was very good. Walked around the marina and looked at some of the big yachts and sailboats……would be another trip to think about!! Bought our ferry tickets for Paros on the 7th. 6.90E each for the 3:35 ferry…..should only take a ½ hour.
Walked to the Temple of Apollo. Many, many steps!! Took some pics. Walked out way up to the Castle but lots of work in progress and couldn’t really find a way to get in….everything seemed to be gated so not sure if it was open.
Back to the main street by the marina for lunch. Fun place but very busy. Lots of seafood shops…..oh to have had a kitchen here!! Loved the octopus hanging to dry in the sun!
Ate at a place called Zorba’s. Ken had shrimp salad which had 4 huge prawns and a green salad in a creamy dressing with walnuts! The guy talked me into the “mullet” then I was worried it was going to cost 50E or something, so I asked him again and he kept saying, “no, no, not much”. Finally after a third time he said 9.50E but I was still a little worried after kind of getting ripped off on Rhodes last year. He brought a little plate of mezes….a couple olives, peppers and some cheese (all good!). The mullet was fried in a batter and of course all the bones too! He showed me how to eat it without getting bones….worked OK but still got a few. Came with a greek salad and fries. Ken had a beer, I had a ½ litre of white wine. We asked for the bill and he brought us a little dish of some kind of candied fruit which were really sweet but tasty. Then he brought the bill……worried for nothing!! Total was 19.60E and it was all excellent! He said “no charge for wine and beer”…..why I’m not sure but I was very happy.
The man beside us, who had lunch with the owner, started chatting with us. First asked where we were from and then about our economy. He thinks by next year Greece will be back to the drachma (wishful thinking I think!) To him the only ones benefiting from the EU bailout are the banks, who according to him got them into this mess in the first place…..hmmmm. Generally don’t talk politics because I don’t think we have a real understanding of other countries economic woes….so just kind of nodded as he talked. He never did let us tell him about ours!
Back to Finikas around 5:30. Emails, sat out side, sort of dozed , read etc. Much warmer today, sunny.
Off to Faro’s for dinner tonight just after 8. Three or four other couples this time. Chatted with the people at the next table. Expats from England who live here full time now….a couple of years….and absolutely love it. Told of their trials and tribulations of buying and building here. Lots of fun by the sound of things. They are Stewart and Roz Badger!
Told him that I’d just read a book by John Humphries who’d had a fun time buying and building on the Peloponese. Stewart knows him…..said he still owes him a pack of smokes lol…. Worked with him at the BBC. He told us about him selling his farm and moving/building here but he didn’t know where, nor did he know that he’d written a book about it.
They told us many things about the island and places to go and what to see. Bought us glasses of “citron” which is only made here on Naxos. It’s a lemon brandy and is good for digestion! Very good. We had the white, which he said was the best. It comes in white, yellow and green. It’s made up near Halki, where we’ll hopefully get to tomorrow. Very nice people and we really enjoyed chatting with them.
Stewart said they’d never to back to the drachma. They pay all their taxes and whatever else they’re supposed to pay but so many people (Greeks) don’t and those that are in charge of collecting them are just as corrupt as everyone not paying them. Tax collectors crack down every second year or so and then follow up with people telling them that for a couple of thousand euro they could “settle” to 50% or so that they really owe……they’ve had this “black” or “underground” economy for hundreds of years and it’s not likely to change very quickly.
Had a great dinner. Moussaka for me, spaghetti for Ken, ½ litre of rose wine 24E. Really good.
Not out of there until after 11. Fun evening!
June 5 Sat
Slept really good (must have been the citron!).
Weather is very different this AM. Nice sunrise, little or no cloud around us and NO wind! The sky to the east though is very overcast looking…..you can sort of smell the rain……mixed in with curry??? Wonder who’s cooking that! Could sit out on the deck in my jammies, no pashmina.
Mornings here are neat. We have a rooster that starts crowing long before sunrise, tons of wonderful little song birds flitting and twittering about….and our little owl. The hill behind us has tons of sheep and lambs that you can hear baaing. There are goats too, with their bells. And of course the sea crashing on the shore. I think we have doves too…..cooing, or maybe it’s the owl!
Started out heading toward Apollonas. First stop was the Temple of Demeter. Down a very narrow, windy road and thru the scruffy town of Ano Sagri.
Just as we parked it started to pour…..really, really pour!! Sat in the car for about 10 minutes until it finally stopped, or pretty much stopped. Just as I opened my door the biggest spider I’ve ever seen in my life came running along from the scrub and under the car! I swear it was almost a foot round. Gingerly got out hoping it had continued running along as opposed to climbing up and into the car somewhere under there….ack!!
Wandered around the site for a while. The temple dates from the 6thc BC. It’s not a big site but some really nice ruins and some restoration done with more to be done. Apparently the bits and pieces, over the centuries, has been scattered all around the area and all the marble taken eons ago. Wonderful old church, Agion Ioannis Giroulas. Lovely paths that are lined with oleander and trees with pretty fan shaped fluffy flowers and bay “trees”….it all smelled wonderful especially after the rain. Not much documentation on it unfortunately. Supposedly a museum either somewhere (?) or one to be built. Hope they can continue on…..
Left there and headed to Halki, the old capital. Completely missed a turn somewhere and ended up in Filoti so thought we’d head to Apirathos…..what an incredible little town!! Lots of stairs so just as it started to rain again found a cute little place for coffees and donuts (huge and delicious!).
Apirathos is like a Corsican hill town except it’s white. On the side of Mt Fanari. Stone houses and marble streets. It’s also called the Marble City. Some of the narrowest streets and alleys we’ve seen, many covered walkways and lots of steps. Went to the Folk Museum, which is supposed to be what a typical Greek village home looked like…..was interesting and the Archaeological Museum with some great artifacts. We walked up and up and up through the winding walkways looking for the place we’d been told about that had the best “picatta” but didn’t find it. We passed a guy in one of the very narrow alleys leading his 3 donkeys clipclopping along to somewhere.
Didn’t come across anything that remotely looked like a shop or restaurant except on the main street or the walkway we came in. Most shops and restaurants were closed anyway….not sure it if was the time of day or lack of tourists as sadly I think we were the only ones there!
The views are pretty spectacular down into the valley. At one point the clouds rolled in and it got “foggy” walking around….you saw the entire valley slowly disappearing. Anyway, what a find this place was…..on a bright sunny day it would be even better!
Decided to head down and across the island to Apollonas from there. A very narrow, twisty road but little or no traffic. Came around a corner to find a flock of sheep walking down the road! Just as we very slowly passed them the shepherd came by on a motorcycle rounding them up…..fun!
Many, many little villages hanging on to the hillsides. Lots of the dry stone walls separating gardens and goat and sheep patches. Beautiful old houses along with many ruins that people still seemed to live in. Did not pass any place that had anything other than a gas station….and a church (every town, big or small has at least two or more churches…). No shops or markets…..where do they go to shop?
Finally caught a glimpse of Apollonas down in the distance. Could see other islands way off……don’t know which ones they were. Very dull day for the most part so the view, while still spectacular, would be even better on a clear day.
Apollonas is a very small town right on the water. Nothing there except for a bit of a marina, really just a place to launch small boats and a few bigger fishing boats tied up. There was an old guy fishing from a bench along the walkway dressed in suit!! About 8 or so restaurants on the water, two local artisan shops and a convenience type store and of course a 100 churches!! I swear there are more churches than there are houses on this island…..if not churches little shrines everywhere.
Had a little snack at the restaurant called “Delphinaki”, which is translated to the Little Dolphin, that P. Storace wrote about in “Dinner with Persephone” when she was here 15 years ago. Still 2 very old ladies sitting waiting for customers…..we were the only ones. No English other than who I think was a grandson (maybe great!) around 12 years old, but very limited, who came to take our orders. Had the best meatballs (kefti) ever, some very good tzatziki, rice and possibly the worst wine I’ve ever tasted. Showed the boy the book and tried to tell him that we’d read about how good the ketfi were and we had to have some…..told him they were as good if not better than what the author said and to let the ladies know how much we liked them. Somehow he thought that I’d written the book and brought the old ladies over to meet me….so I had to explain that I didn’t etc. etc…..did not go well because they brought us more wine!!! We weren’t quite sure what to do….if we drank it we were afraid they’d bring us yet more!! Ended up dumping some of it over the side into the shrubs and said we couldn’t have any more because we were driving. Our total bill came to 10E…..not sure if we got a deal or what. What a fun time though.
Back on the road to see the Temple of Dionysus and then the kouros. One little sign with an arrow pointing down a path but no place to stop and park along the very narrow road….so didn’t get there.
The road back to the chora was really windy…up, up and up with spectacular coastline views and of other islands off in the distance.
The sun poked out every now and again but mostly shone down through the clouds creating beautiful sunrays down onto the water.
Stopped in town to get some cash and get my watch battery changed. Was going to stay for dinner but was a long day with lots of driving already so just back to the hotel around 5.
Maybe we’ll get back there for dinner in one of the many, many great looking restaurants.
Ken not feeling the best so just had a snackie type dinner at the hotel.
June 6 Sun
Slept well last night….hooray!
Must have rained thru the night….all our deck furniture was wet.
Had breakfast and headed out to tour around some more. Nice out, sunny but surprisingly quite chilly!!
Took the road to Agiassos to check out the beach. Beautiful but not too much there. Looks like townhouses or maybe resorts. The road gets pretty rough going further along and we’d have to come back the same way so just decided to head back towards Halki and explore from there.
Came around a corner to a flock of sheep who weren’t in a big hurry to get off the road……fun to watch them just wandering along.
Found Halki but parking was a problem. Drove around for a bit then decided to just carry on. Too bad because it looked lovely.
Just past Halki and just before Moni we came to the Panagia Drossiane. Found a parking spot on the side of the road, just barely off the road! Signs for these churches and monuments are pretty much right at them with no advance warning so you don’t have a lot of time to find a place to park.
The church is really ancient but still being used today. Very dark inside (no pics allowed). Smelled very musty and of incense…..a couple of very old ladies that I think were there to help visitors but unfortunately for us they didn’t speak any English. A number of frescos/mosaics in dire need of some restoration….what you could make out looked quite incredible. There were bits of marble transepts (?) laying around inside but nothing to tell you were they came from. Some very old reliquaries and oil lamps and of course the frescos of the Agois (Saint) Georgios and the panagia.
Entry fee was 1.50E. On the way out we dropped in an extra 5E to contribute to the upkeep and restoration. Just as we were walking back to the car a tour bus arrived, dropping people off on the road!! Good timing!
Sun was out and had warmed up nicely!
On to Moni. Parking near the entrance to the village. Was hoping to do a bit of shopping, or at least looking for the famous textiles but not too much open. Lots of beautiful wood carvings as well…..maybe olive wood? Lots of olive trees. Very pretty village, mostly ancient looking stone houses and cobbled streets. Tons of flowers. Too hazy to see the sea.
Leaving the village a lady with a little girl flagged us down and asked in very broken English and sign language if we could drive them up the hill…..was very, very hot. We saw her in the village chatting with another lady so figured it was OK. Got to the top of the hill and she motioned to turn left and head down a very bumpy, pot holed and very narrow sort of road. We only went a few minutes and then had to tell her we couldn’t go any further because we were worried we’d wreck the car…..more elementary English and sign language from us trying to say sorry and explain. The little girl spoke a bit more English and we think she wanted to give us eggs??? She said thank you many times. No place to turn around so we started backing up the hill….the clutch was not happy. Found a spot with an extra foot to spare so managed to turn around…..a foot this way, then a foot back etc. By the time we got back up the hill we could smell the clutch or the motor or something burning. Ken said it just needed a rest and to cool down so stopped at the top not far from the road. Tried to see where down the hill the woman and little girl could have lived. Nothing that resembled a house anywhere. Some nice big sectioned off gardens and a couple of stone lean-tos.
From there we drove on thru Kinidaros. Very cute little town built on a hill. Many pretty blue doors and lots of flowers…..thought about lunch but again nothing looked open! Just decided to carry on to see the kouros.
En route we discovered the marble quarries…..OMG!! tons and tons (literally!!). Some nicely packed up and ready to be shipped to all corners of the world, some still in big hunks, lots of small bits and pieces and of course the mountain that they were slowly chipping away at. Like a smaller version of Carrera Italy. Stopped to take pics then drove on a little further and around the next curve WOW!!! An even more impressive marble mountain. Just amazing.!!! The valley below was incredibly beautiful with views out to the sea.
The kouros are at Melanes/Flerio. Only about 100 metres or so on the trail and there he was…..partially carved, laying on its back. This one is supposedly from the 6thC BC!! Pretty incredible that it has survived! That seemed to be the only one!! I guess the other site had the the better carved one and a few others. Very nice garden called the “Paradise Garden” that surrounds it. Many “citron” trees, which look like large-ish green grapefruits, grapes, plums etc. The people that own the garden or at least tend to it have a little “café”…..loosely using that term…but cute set in the garden.’’
Back down the path to find the visitors centre but took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up at a deadend. Eventually found the right path but was lunch time so just headed back to the car. Milli, Kourounohori (sp?) and Melanes are nice little hill towns just past there.
Drove into town for lunch at one of the touristy seaside joints…..fun place on the marina called the Citron Cafe. Ken had a club sandwich (v.g.) 4.50E I had the spinach pie, which ended up being 2 huge ones and some chips 4.50E. Could only eat one and that was more than enough. I had an Alfa beer 3.50E. Total was 15E.
Wandered around for a bit just enjoying the beautiful buildings and narrow little streets with quaint cafes and shops. Every corner you turn down is just fantastic, I wish we had come back in for dinner one night but oh well……
Filled up the car and headed back to Finika’s around 4. Ken snoozed, I checked emails, read for a bit and did a some repacking.
Around 8 we went down the road to the “OOA” (was in Greek!!) restaurant to dinner and ran into Stewart and Roz again. I had the garlic pork (v.g), Ken had the steak and French fries. 2 and ¼ bottles of wine, which we shared with S & R. Total bill was 26E!! Chatted for quite a while. It was Roz’s birthday so they shared her birthday cake with us….lots of complimentary raki and some wicked honey drink. Stewart reads a lot so told him about the book I’d just finished, Dinner with Persephone…..he wanted to read it. They invited us back to their house for coffee……wasn’t too sure at first but decided they were a lovely couple and why not.
Went back to the hotel to pick up the book and followed them to their place. Very nice typical style of house you see here. Main living area on the main floor and bedrooms in the basement….much cooler. Nice pool and deck…..not large but really quaint and comfortable. Told us about all their trials and tribulations of building on Naxos….I’m sure not fun while it was happening but pretty funny telling us about it….easy to laugh after!!
They had vacationed on Naxos a number of times and decided to retire here. She just turned 55 and was a civil servant in London. He did many different things, working for the BBC and on his own etc. Chatted about books and sports cars (right up Ken’s alley!!!) Great evening with an invite to come back and stay with them. Exchanged emails, addresses etc. Didn’t get back to the hotel until almost 1AM!!
June 7 Mon
Packed up this morning, did emails. Had breakfast and left around 10:30.
Found the car rental return place with no problem. Finished there by 11:30 so had a few hours to kill until our ferry at 3:30.
Wandered up the “paralia”. Very windy today! Stopped at a place (Coppa’s?) that was out of the wind but still in the sun. People watched for a while then off again……pain in the ass rolling the suitcases….didn’t head off too far. I wish we’d spent more time in town….dinner here one night would have been great at one of the little restaurants down the very beautiful little alleys…..oh well!
Found a couple of pizza places right at the pier to have lunch. “Il Girosole” and “Relax” cafes. Decided on Relax because there were more people in there! Yiannis, the guy that owns it, was a riot! Chats constantly, was really entertaining and the food was good and cheap. Ken had mushroom and bacon pizza 8E, I had the “sausage pita” 2E. Yiannis comes buy and chats, tells jokes and says “just sit and “Relax”……hahaha….then walks away….and of course wanders back! When we told him we were from Vancouver, he got all excited. He’d been there when he lived in Canada (Toronto) for 12 years. A real character. Had all his old cronies/buddies sitting at a table along the back wall. Would visit with them, then go around and visit with each table for a bit….then repeat. A couple glasses of wine and coffees, total was 21E. Fun guy……left a tip and gave him a $5 CDN bill to add to his collection on the wall.
Saw the big NEL ferry coming in so walked out onto the pier. It had just barely docked with cars and trucks started coming off…2 minutes later more were being loaded on. The inside of the ferry is huge…..like a gigantic plane. Nice comfy seats and really dirty windows. Only about 20 cars/trucks and bikes on it and maybe 50 people if that. The total turnaround time from arriving in Naxos to leaving was less than 10 minutes!!
Trip was only a ½ hour. Ferry arrived in Parikia. You have to get off quick…..turnaround time even less here!! By the time we’d walked down the pier and turned around the ferry had already pulled out! No messing with those guys!
Cab was 15E incl. tip to Mani’s Inn in Naoussa, which is in a big protected bay. Still kind of windy here too but feels warmer than Naxos. The road is in way better condition than the ones on Naxos.
Decided not to rent a car seen we’re only here for 3 days…..will be nice to relax after being busy on Naxos.
What a nice little place this is! All white, blue doors and shutters, tons of red geraniums, great little beach, nice pool and Mary (owner) is just lovely. The rooms are a little old and tired looking but impeccably clean and they have a mini kitchen with a little hot plate for coffee and the basic two of everything dishes and cutlery if you decide to eat in. Our deck faces the bay, beach, pool and town. (Sadly it appears that Mani’s is now permanently closed)
Went down to the bar, had a beer. Changed and went for a nice dip in the pool and another beer, or two! Much warmer here than Naxos….strange considering they aren’t that far away from each other!! Ken went back up to the room for a nap I sat and read in the covered area at the beach for a bit. A very loud, but fun bunch from Denmark on the beach.
Around 8 we headed into town…..walked across the beach and up a bunch of stairs and along the road and we were there….not even a 10 minute walk.
So pretty!! Wandered around the warren of narrow streets/alleys. There’s a big main square that they are redoing with ponds, waterfalls, fountains etc. Many seaside restaurants at the marina and many more down the main pedestrian walk way. It seems to be a little more “polished” than Naxos….a little more prosperous and tidier I guess. Not as many uncared for buildings. Most were nicely painted with pretty gardens. Some very nice shops….some rather high-end ones.
Found a busy restaurant to have dinner at 9. Ken wasn’t hungry so just had a huge piece of apple pie. I had chicken, bacon and mushrooms in a cream sauce (ok). Bill incl a glass of wine, water and a coke was just over 20E.
Nice evening so a nice walk back to the hotel. The stairs back down to the beach could be a little scary if it was darker but was still bright enough to manage them.
To bed rather early (just after 10:30) but very tired tonight.
June 8 Tues.
Slept OK…..not the most comfy bed but was tired enough that it didn’t matter. Was a bit tough getting up and out of it though.
Beautiful morning…..sun shining on our little deck and NO WIND!!! But of course that meant it was really hot. Made our instant coffee to tie us over. Sat around and read until 9.
Breakfast is included and served to you……hard boiled egg (cold), 3 slices of bread, a couple of different jams, cream cheese, juice and coffee. Certainly enough and also good enough!
The plan here is to relax after all the exploring we did on Naxos. And that’s pretty much just what we did. Found chairs in a good spot by the pool and pretty much hung out there all day.
Had lunch at the snack bar/restaurant by the beach……sandwiches and fries. Really nice little beach in front of the hotel and not very many people at all. I think it was just the Danish people that are staying here. Had a little walk around and then just headed back to the pool.
Walked into town around 7. Found a great little bar right at the marina. Had wine and drinks waiting for the sunset…..just beautiful!!
Found a travel agency and bought out tickets for Santorini. 15E each. Leaves at 11:55. 3hrs.
Wandered around and in and out of shops for a bit. Such a pretty place….great shopping but a lot pricier than Naxos for sure.
Had dinner at a little place on the water on the other side of town. View was fantastic even in the dark! The food was only OK. Decided to try an appie type sampler plate. Crab cakes were very good, the meatballs were excellent, kalamari was very disappointing, no taste at all….really boring soggy batter and a crab salad that was ok other than a bit too much dill and FAKE crab!! Shared a bottle of wine, total bill 32E. Most expensive meal we’ve had yet. Location, location, location I guess.
Found a set of stairs to go down on to the beach but there was a man sitting in a chair at the top so wasn’t sure if they were private or what. Asked him is we could go down the stairs to the beach……”Are you German?”, we said no Canadian, he said “OK then go….” !!! Found a different set of stairs to go back up!
Wandered around and shopped a bit more….found a few more interesting restaurants tucked away at the back of town….they had ribs!! So that’s the plan for tomorrow.
Nice walk back to the hotel. Tons of yachts, some in the marina and some out in the bay. Lots of lights, can hear music coming from some. Definitely seems to be a favorite spot.
No plans for tomorrow either!! Did think about arranging a bit of tour around but will just catch up on sleep and reading. Ken is just not feeling the greatest, so a couple of slow days are good.
Read for about 5 min and was out cold!
June 9 Wed.
Woke up around 2AM sneezing my head off. Happened yesterday morning too…..feather pillows maybe??
Up at 6AM and got to enjoy the best sunrise yet! Just spectacular.
Nothing at all exciting today…..another day pretty much a repeat of yesterday. Pool, lunch, walk on the beach, more pool. Hardly any wind here so much, much hotter and seems to be getting hotter still!
More big yachts….one is so big it has to be a cruise ship but couldn’t find a name on it…..Ken figured it was at least 200ft. Didn’t notice too much activity on it or any tender type boats heading into the marina.
Cleaned up and back into town for some last minute shopping and dinner. So many shops with the white cotton clothes that look so nice. Found a pair of really cute pants that I tried on but looked like a fat blob…..nothing like the dummy wearing them in the window….ah sigh.
A drink at a bar along the main street and watched another super sunset.
Dinner was at “OINOH” (all in Greek so the closest I can get to spelling it). Started with the zucchini balls (v.g.)…..basically grated zuch and carrot fritters…really good dipped in the tzatziki. Both of us had the ribs, which were excellent…..they had been cut more like we get Maui Ribs. Not much on them other than a type of maple sea salt but really delicious and tender. Came with fries, coleslaw and mashed fava beans. All really good. A glass of wine each. Total was 30E incl tip!
Slowly worked out way back to Mani’s. Kind of sorry we didn’t get a better look around the island but that wasn’t really the plan and it was kind of nice to not be on the go continually….so all is good. Sat at the bar for a bit, had a drink and a cappa then off to bed around midnight. Lots of fun watching the big group of people that are staying here (Danish)…..couldn’t understand a word they were saying but certainly having a great time.
June 10 Thurs.
Up just after 6:30 so missed sunrise. Pretty stuffed up but no sneezing this AM….will not miss the feather pillows here!
Had breakfast, packed up an off we went back to Parikia to catch the ferry to Santorini. Cab ride back was 15E incl. tip.
While waiting for our ferry to come in we notice a ton of people hanging around waving signs for various hotels. Probably get much better rates doing it this way and now that we’ve been here and saw the same thing on Naxos, if we ever come back I think this is what I’d do. If the place is really crappy you just pack up and head back down to the pier and try again.
Once the ferry that had arrived left, they all sort of spread out and lounged around waiting for the next one to come in. A gal came over to us and asked if we were from Vancouver!! Not just Canada, but Vancouver!! She said it was the “accent” lol. She’s from White Rock! Came here on a girls holiday about 10 years ago, fell in love with the place, came back the next year and bought a hotel!! Her husband is a lawyer and doesn’t like to travel so she does this for half the year Apr – Oct. Closes up for the rest of year. Chatted for a bit and low and behold if she doesn’t know a couple of people I work with. One from when they both worked in a Dental office and the other guy is her neighbour!! How bizarre.
Ferry arrived and on we got. It’s a huge one, lots of outdoor areas, a restaurant, bar etc. A quick ride and stop (all of 10 minutes) on Naxos and off we went to Santorini.
Not too much to see along the way. About 3 hours all together. Passed a number of cruise ships and few little rocky islands off in the distance but nothing else.
As you get closer to Santorini it looks just like any of the other islands UNTIL you round the tip of the island and enter what is I guess the caldera……WOW, WOW and WOW. I think I cried! It really is pretty spectacular. Cliffs that go almost straight up with the white towns perched right on the edge…..it truly does look like snow! Truly breathtaking if it’s something you’ve wanted to see forever!
Arrived at Athinios and quickly got off….not quite as quick a stop a Naxos and Paros but still couldn’t have been more than maybe 20 min. More cars and people getting on and off here.
Looked for our guy from Marizan Caves and Villas…..nada! Made a quick call to Marizan who said they’d call the owner and get someone to get us. Not sure what the deal was but a few minutes later the guy from the car rental place came along with our name on a sign……lol we were the only ones left at the pier…..and said to wait there. He took our luggage inside and said it would be 20 minutes of so. A few minutes later the same guy backs up a little car, loads our luggage and off we went. The road out of town is a series of hairpins to get you up to the top. Up and up and around and around you go……way too fast too!!! The views are unbelieveable. He drove us to Fira where the Marizan guy picked us up so it all worked out. Tried to give him some money but he wouldn’t take it. Another incredible drive….like being in a race car!! More gorgeous breathtaking views.
Yannis met us and apologized for the transfer problem. Showed us to our little cave and was just blown away by the view!! You can lay on the bed and look at the beautiful blue Aegean Sea!! Nice little patio with a potted olive tree with little olives on it, a cushioned stone lounge, small table, a couple of chairs and a little palapa for shade. Will get the sun all day so hot, hot, hot!
The cave is small but nice. Good size bathroom, queen size bed, TV, a couple chairs and a little kitchen corner. Pretty basic but clean and the views make up for any shortcomings. Breakfast is in our fridge….a container with meat and cheese, milk, juice, yogurt. Also cereal, honey, coffee and tea, salt, pepper, sugar. Fresh bread/buns are brought each day when they replenish the other goodies. Wifi is free.
The pool is at the bar next door. Can use it for free but he suggested that if we wanted to use the chairs, we should order a drink or two. Our “studio” cave is on level 4. Kind of have to work your way down through other peoples patios but we’re lucky cuz ours is at the end so nobody needs to walk thru. Marizan is right at the end of any development….the hillside next to us looks like there may have been something there at some point but just mountain and bits of ruin now. Great view of the old fort looking east and down to Amoudi below. The view off in the distance is just breathtaking! A few cruise ships (big and small).
Got organized and headed out around 7 to find a place with good sunset views for dinner. Already crowds starting to line up and find good spots. Everyone comes to Oia for the sunsets!
Sunset Café for dinner. Spectacular sunset!! Food was good but a bit more expensive than Paros or Naxos. I had the kefte, Ken had spaghetti, 2 beers, 2 coffees 42.40E
Picked up some eggs and other bits of stuff to make dinner another night and just sit and enjoy the sunset from our patio. We’re here for a week so would be nice to eat in.
Ran into Yannis on the way back and he invited us up to his deck for a drink. Definitely the best spot in Oia to see sunset!! Chatted for an hour or so, had a couple glasses of wine. Just a perfect temp at that time. He built Marizan 5 years ago and he’s been open now for 4 seasons. Originally from Athens, where he spends “off season” or else travelling. His wife works in the family insurance business. 2 daughters in university. A bit quirky, but a really nice guy. He can organize a car rental for us and trips into Fira or wherever we might want to go.
June 11 Fri.
Slept good…..nice comfy bed.
I’ve managed to bang my shins, stub my toes, trip up the step to the bathroom and hit my head on the door frame…..need to be careful wandering around here!
What a treat to have a drip coffee maker!! Really enjoyed my coffee this AM. Sat outside on the cushioned bench updating my journal and just taking in the view. The Celebrity Equinox came in this morning along with a couple other smaller ships…..not sure if cruises or private yachts. Just the perfect temp and so quiet….really peaceful. All you hear are the birds.
Took our time this AM. Had breakfast and sat around until the cleaning people came around asking when we’d be going out.
Breakfast was a bowl of corn or frosted type flakes with the greek yogurt drizzled with honey…..I could eat this every day!!
Off to explore!! Up, up, down, around and up some more! There is not one bit of level walkway here! Lots of stairs with some pretty big steps, most are narrow little cobbled alleys….just beautiful! All white. Many blue roofs and doors. And around every corner there is a view. Spectacular picture perfect views!!!
I wonder how that lady from the ferry with the motorized scooter is going to get around…..maybe they were going somewhere on the other side of the island???
Finally get to the main street and things level off and widen but also a ton of people. A couple more cruise ships have sailed in….one call “Happy Cruises” lol. Lots of Italians…..very noisy and a bit pushy/aggressive getting thru the crowds.
Found the centre of Oia and did a bit of shopping. Tea towels for everybody, a shirt for Ken, a bag with cats on it for Linds. Pretty expensive here…some high end shops (the white linen places…love!!). Most of the touristy stuff isn’t too bad…lots and lots of souvenir places that all sell the same stuff for the same price!! Got Donna an “eye” pendant that she can put on her bracelet. Picked up some wine for happy hour/sunset.
Had lunch at a pastry type place….one of the only places that wasn’t crazy busy….all was OK. I had the cheese and veggie pie, which was like a quiche (g.). Ken had a ham, cheese and mushroom crepe (tons of cheese v.g.) and a couple of glasses of wine 25E.
Found the “grocery store” and got olives, cheese and snackie things for later.
Back to our cave and away from the crowds! Changed and headed up to the pool for the rest of the afternoon. The pool is right next door at the Lioyerma Bar and Café. 5E each for a Mythos (big ones) but so worth it to enjoy the pool and the spectacular view…….it’s at the very western most point of the island so all you see is sea and more sea…pretty nice.
Swam, read, snoozed and people watched until around 5 then home to do much of the same thing. Not much shade though out front so pretty hot.
Got cleaned up and got the snacks and wine out for happy hour…..by 6:30 people were already jostling for spots on the castle walls and all up and down the alleys. Sunset isn’t until about 8:15!!! It is awesome but not sure I’d just sit around waiting for it.
Around 7:30 Yannis yelled down to come up to meet some other guest and enjoy the view. He does have the best view…..right at the west end and totally unobstructed……pretty fantastic. Had a great time chatting and drinking wine. I took some olives up to snack on. Met a couple from Colorado. Watched a couple of cruise ships sail off into the sunset! But noticed that there was still one big one in port…..hopefully they’re all in Fira and not Oia!
Thought about ordering pizza but ended up out again. Found a lively little bar with OK food (pasta) and a fun bunch of people. No view which was probably why it was cheap. Home around 11. Still lots of people out and about….not nearly as crazy as earlier in the day though. And it’s the perfect temp too.
I think tomorrow we’ll pick up pizza or paninis or something to have at home. Did find a bank machine, which was a good thing.
To Fira by bus tomorrow! Hoping there aren’t too many cruise ships in…..wishful thinking I guess!
June 12 Sat.
Slept great! Up just after 6 and just getting bright out. Made coffee and took my book and journal out to the lounge to enjoy the view. I really don’t think I would ever get sick of looking at this. Thirasia (island that is part of the caldera) across the way and the ferries going back and forth, birds and more birds singing and flitting around all the flowers….tons of red geraniums and other pretty ones in pots and planters everywhere you look. Clear blue sky….and just pleasantly warm. Only one cruise ship so far, the “Thomson Celebrity” (British tour company).
Walked to the bus station to find the bus for Fira. Also found a bit of a bigger supermarket and some more little shops to check out. Bus to Fira was 1.40E each and took about 15-20 min.
Fira is much bigger than Oia but pretty much the same idea. More shops and more restaurants. It’s up higher too and perched pretty much about the centre of the island. I think it’s even hillier than Oia. More cruise ships had came in so it was really busy….walking shoulder to shoulder just about everywhere.
Found a little bar with a nice view for pizza and beer. 32E. Wandered for a bit then decided we’d walk down the 600+ steps to the marina. Not the brightest thing we’ve done…..besides being really hot, the steps are big and wide and very old and shiny in some places which makes them very slippery too. Lots of poor donkeys going up and down…..they make me so sad. That also means there is lots of donkey poop to side step along with bits of hay and the donkey riders, some who just race up and down. They also “park” the donkeys at various places on the steps, so you have to get around them. And not one speck of shade either. Probably took us a good ½ hour to get to the bottom.
A few little bars, restaurants, shops and a duty free store (this is where the cruise ships come in). Sat at one of the bars for a good hour drinking water and beer/wine just to cool down. Went for a bit of a walk around the marina…..some mega yachts….and watched all the “day trip” boats coming and going.
Took the cable car back up. 2.30E each but well worth it. I thought it was little scary…..lots of bumping and crunching happening and our car wasn’t even full.
Shopped a bit more….tee shirt for Cadence, bathing suit cover up for me and that was it. Crowds had definitely thinned by 5. Fira seems to be a bit more lively than Oia…..more bars and pub type places. Found the bus station and checked the posted schedules. Tell the times, which buses go where, the times and how much each one is. No such thing as “transfers” here. You go from point A to point B and pay whatever the fare is then purchase your next fare to point C when you get to point B and so on. You just get on the bus and the conductor or whatever he’s called comes around and collects the fare. Buses here are great. Big, like tour buses and air conditioned!
Picked up goodies at the market, near the bus station, to make sandwiches for dinner, chips, nuts, olives, cheese etc. and more wine….a rose this time. Just totally exhausted from the heat today and those damn steps. Would not recommend walking them. In hindsight it would have been fun to catch the ferry back to Ammoudi marina just below us (and take a taxi up!).
No shade yet on our deck so still pretty warm out there at 6:30. Ken snoozed, I had some wine and nuts and olives for a happy hour, read and watched the cruise ships leaving.
Up to Yannis around 7:30 for sunset happy hour. Met some newbies….an Aussie couple around our age. Nice chatting with everyone. Beautiful sunset again……right into the sea tonight so pretty awesome.
Back to the cave, made our sandwiches. Sat around updating emails, catching up on news, looking at pics etc. To bed around midnight.
What a great day! Exhausting and crazy busy and crowded but what a great place this is.
June 13 Sun
Up at 6 again! Two huge cruise ships, Aida Diva (has big red lips painted on the front!) and another even bigger one that I didn’t recognize nor could I read the name on it. A couple more fairly large sail boats (yachts!) and an old galleon looking one called “Gallileo”. Saw those when we were checking out sailing trips for Turkey….they looked really nice, a little bigger and bit more upscale than the gulets. The big NEL ferry came in and a smaller one going over to Thirasia…..might be a fun thing to check out.
New people next door from Melbourne Aus. They’ve been on the road for 3 months….Italy, Croatia, Naxos and here. They have a cute little guy that’s 2 and half named Xavier.
Organized a car rental for tomorrow at 9.
Another slow start….had breakfast and sat around until 11……the cleaning people start to get a bit antsy at that point! Have told them to not bring more bread and buns tomorrow morning……way too much for just the two of us. We usually get 3 or 4 buns, a baguette and sometimes croissants too!!
Found a different route into the centre this morning. Fun wandering around where people actually live…..much quieter and more flowers, pots, planters and beautiful climbing/trailing bushes….only us so hopefully not intruding on their peace and quiet!
Spied the old bookstore the other day and made a point of visiting today. Went down the steps and in to have a look. OMG!!! I loved it……what a mess!! Lots of old and new books, books on shelves, books piled up on the floor and every counter and table top and it smelled good!!! Must say I was a little overwhelmed by the whole place. I didn’t really need another book so just browsed and browsed until Ken had had enough.
Went to a place called Thalami for lunch. I finally had my stuffed peppers and they were excellent. Ken had the fried shrimp, which came battered, heads and all. Very good but a bit of pain to pick all the heads and shells off. Had the saganaki cheese which was excellent…nice and crispy in a puffy batter. Wine and a beer 35E.
Spent the afternoon by the pool….Ken had a couple of beers I had a couple different fun drinks, which were pretty potent!! Swam, read, snoozed……not a bad afternoon at all!
Early dinner in….chicken breast tornados (sort of….but really good) fried up some of the huge shallot (.15 at the market) scrambled a couple eggs with melted cheese, olives and more rose wine! All pretty good considering we have a frying pan and that is about it let alone a mini stove and a foot of counter if that! Sat outside and enjoyed the view and the cruise ships heading out.
Up to Yannis for sunset. Lots of newbies today. Americans from Minnesota and Michigan. Fun chatting with everyone…..most are only here for a 3 days, which really is probably enough if you go, go, go. A week is probably a little too long….I think 5 days would have been enough but that said I’m kind of glad we’ve got lots of time to just sit and relax too…..not often we do that on vacation!!!
Back down around 11. Emails, Facebook and that was about it. For the first time since we’ve been in Greece I had to get the mosquito stuff out!! Nasty tonight….feels a bit more humid so maybe that’s why.
A couple of cruise ships left late tonight. One left around 7:30 and the other just after 10….all lit up….looked very nice.
June 14 Mon.
Up at 6 as usual. Just beautiful this morning….water is like glass, not even a ripple. Just barely a breeze. It is so calm and quiet this AM you can actually hear the people in the boats and at the marina talking.
First cruise ship of the day is Azamara Quest. Next a small ship called Arethusa (??)…looks nice. Another sort of galleon type boat about the size of the one yesterday, another Thomson cruise ship then the Wind Spirit (tall ship) and a smaller one called “Callisto”. Wow…..I hope they’re not all renting cars today!
Our car rental guy arrived right at 9 on the dot. 40E for the day incl extra insurance. He left it in the bar parking lot. The car is pretty much a piece of crap…a peugeot of some sort. The doors don’t lock…they just barely close!! Gas tank is empty as in ding, ding, ding empty! But the AC works so we’ll survive….I hope!
Very, very hot this AM and feeling pretty humid, not much of a breeze at all.
Off we go to explore. Yannis wrote all over our map showing all the things to see, beaches, wineries etc.
Headed off toward the far end of the island and worked our way back. A very nice drive with incredible views in every direction. Many houses perched on the sides of the hills. Great view off and down to the east and the lowlands (?) and beaches on that side of the island.
First stop was just near Pyrgos to the Santo Winery. 1.20E per tasting. Tried a couple. The views from here are stunning!! You can see the entire caldera, Fira, Oia off in the distance just everything. It’s on the cliff above Athinios. Nice big patios and lots of tables to enjoy your wine and the view. Big elaborate bar set up for tasting. Tried two wines…..they were OK. One a nice light white and the other their version of Vin Santo. Chatted with the winemaker for a bit….asked about how they grow the grapes and the methods…..very different here than Italy, France or at home. No trellising or wiring stalks…..they’re just on the ground sort of sprawled out. He basically called it “clump and tuck”. It’s done that way to protect the grapes from the harsh sun and brutal heat in the summer and also the winds that can come up.
He showed us the roof tops that they cover completely with grapes in September. The grapes pretty much turn into raisins so they have a high sugar content…..told us it was sort of the same idea as our icewine but since no ice or frost here, they dry the grapes to get the sugar…….all very interesting.
Just a beautiful spot…..would have been great to have lunch there but too early..
Boutari was the next stop……pretty basic and very modern tasting room with a little shop and a wall display of all their wines and awards. Tasting is 5E for 5 different wines or 6E for 8. 8E for a cheese plate. Tried a white and a rose….both were really good. I buy this wine for “Greek nights” at home and it’s only OK…..but tastes just right here!
On to Akrotiri…..supposedly a super ancient ruin site but it wasn’t open. Not sure why as the signage wasn’t terribly clear. Oh well, pretty hot to be exploring ruins today anyway I guess.
Checked out the Red and White Sand beaches……the Red is pretty neat. Big red cliffs and a rocky pumice-ish beach just covered in brightly coloured beach umbrellas!! Picture perfect!
Right where you park for Red Beach is a little snack stand and a local produce stand where they had “real” sundried tomatoes happening! Big, gorgeous looking figs, bottles of capers, other fresh veg and home made wine!
Stopped at the Akrotiri Hotel hoping for lunch but nothing like that really so we just had a drink and a chocolate croissant (v.g.).
Around and down the east side to Perissa. A very touristy town on the flats. Lots of “villas” and rental places, touristy/beach-ie type shops and tons of restaurants. Not a terribly nice beach…..too pebbly and rocky. We’re certainly spoiled by our beautiful soft sandy beaches at home! Many bars along the beach where you rent umbrellas and chairs, or you sit/lay on the rocks. Not really a place I’d like to stay. No pictures??
A little further along on the road we saw what looks like a little church built into the side of the mountain…..it had to have been blasted out and how it was built I have no clue as there didn’t seem to be any access route up to it.
Back on the main road you can see the vineyards in just about every directions….very nice.
Karami is the same idea as Perissa but bigger and nicer I think….more organized with a pedestrian only waterfront street, which we inadvertently drove down lol….. Lots of restaurants of course, more shops some that seemed a little more upscale than just the usual tourist shops. Busy but still really nice to walk around. No pics here either……obviously not too impressed I guess.
Had a late lunch. Stuffed peppers and tomatoes and a glass of wine for me. A huge big burger and coffee for Ken. 23E, which I don’t think was too bad considering where we were…..and the food was good too!
The beach here is the same a Perissa except the rocks/pebbles are black! The beach starts out sort of sandy but as you get closer to the water it gets pretty rocky/pebbly. Stuck our feet in…..was warmish. But again to get a good spot to sit and enjoy it you’d have to rent an umbrella and chairs. Good people watching though!
Drove the scenic low road back past the airport. Took a wrong turn and ended up back on the main road but found another that we thought might take us back down….very steep and twisty and very scenic but wasn’t sure if we’d make it back up if we went all the way so we found a spot to turn and in that stupid car just barely make it back up. Honestly thought if we’d stopped anywhere we’d just start rolling backwards.
Back on the main road near Imerovigli (sp??) we found a good road to go down and drove along the coast under where Oia is to Ammoudi Bay. Very pretty……very dry and desert-ie but lovely with the sea right there. We can see the bay and a bit of the marina from our cave but there is a more to see once down there. Some really cute little restaurants right ON the water, lots of boats bobbing around and many fisherman cleaning nets etc. This would be a great place for dinner one night! Too bad we were still so full from lunch and it was still a bit early. Maybe Yannis would drive us down???
Dropped the car off and left the keys with Yannis…..hoping all was OK and no issues. Should have asked for a discount for leaving a ¼ tank of gas in it!!
For sunset tonight we took a bottle of the Boutari rose up along with some olives and nuts. Yannis brought out bread, salami and some cheese that was made on Thirassia. The Aussie couple and the Minnesota people came up too. Enough goodies for dinner for us. Enjoyed the sunset and company until around 11 then the mosquitos just got to be too much.
Quite a busy day, hot and tiring especially for Ken having to drive that crappy little car. But a good day and was great to see more of the island.
June 15 Tues.
Oh ho hum…..just another beautiful morning.
A big Costa cruise ship this AM. Got up a little later so may have missed more.
Walked into the centre for breakfast this AM…..a little place we’d notice the other day that had omlettes. I ended up with a really good and huge waffle with cinnamon and brown sugar 5E, Ken had one with the works on it…..strawberries, kiwi, nectarines and apple and two scoops of ice cream 12E Two coffees and two bottles of water total was 27E. Great view and a bunch of fans going to get the air moving….so hot we were stuck to the plastic chairs!
Finished shopping….golf shirt for Craig, a little dress for Cadence, a donkey fridge magnet (never buy them but just because……..), a cookbook for Steve and Di and some very pretty Christmas ornaments. Forgot to check out how many other ships were in today…..seemed exceptional busy in the centre.
Back around 1:30. Got changed and spent the rest of the day by the pool. Drinks and snacks, read and dozed and enjoyed the views…..the sea and the people at the bar lol.
Went for dinner earlier, just before 7 so we could get back for sunset but didn’t make it. Tried the place the Aussies liked “Kyprida”. It was pretty good. I had the lamb in an onion sauce, potatoes and zucchini (13.50E), Ken had the ravioli with halumi and meat sauce (9E) which was very good….he finished off every last bit of it! ½ litre of wine and 2 coffees total was 33.50E.
Back and up to Yannis for a glass or two. Chatted until around 10:30.
Seems to be way more people in Oia today and tonight….wonder if one or two of the ships in port are staying overnight. Didn’t notice any of them leaving earlier. Definitely more people sitting on the castle tonight….right on the wall!! I think they’re crazy!
June 16 Wed.
Our last day here. Want to say “already…where had the time gone etc. etc.” but truthfully a week is too long on Santorini. Should have tried to squeek in another island….maybe 3 days here and 4 on Crete or one of the other less touristy islands. That said, it’s been great here…..definitely moved at a much slower pace than we usually do but not a bad thing to just have some down time and what better place to relax than by the pool or on our little patio with views to die for!
First big cruise ship today was an MSC something, then RCL’s Splendor of the Seas and the Seabourn Odessey (which looks pretty amazing), a couple of humungous yachts….one called Il Miro. Last but the biggest of all to come in was the Equinox….the biggest cruise ship I’ve seen so far (lots of people!!!!). No need to head into the centre today, which is probably a good thing.
Had the last of our eggs and other goodies for breakfast….along with the yogurt and croissants. I’m going to miss yogurt and honey on my cereal!!
Spent the day at the pool. Lunch was baguettes with cheese and meat and a couple of beer. Read, napped, swam and that was about it. A good way to spend the last day here.
Off to dinner around 7:30. Neptune. Ken had the steak (v.v.g.) I had the seafood pasta that was excellent. With wine our total bill was 53.50E but worth if to watch the cruise ships sailing out of port and our last magnificient sunset on Santorini.
Came back to chat with Yannis and organize our ride to the airport. Nobody but us tonight. He showed us his new “Cave Villa”. It’s really nice. The plan is to build more below and a bigger one that he’ll live in thru the winter and rent out during the summer.
Visited a bit with our neighbours from Birmingham….just arrived and spending a couple days then doing some island hopping.
Repacked, did emails and caught up on facebook. To bed around 12.
I think today was by far the hottest day yet…..tomorrow is supposed to be even hotter so our timing was pretty good. Not sure I could handle it if it got much hotter. The cave stays sort of cool but pretty sure after a number of days it would be unbearable. Very muggy too, which Yannis said happens more during the summer….and the mosquitos too! Pick up for 10:30AM.
June 17 Thurs.
Our last morning and a very beautiful one it is!
Five cruise ships…the Silversea “Silver Wind”, something “Happy Cruises”, the Costa “Fortuna”, Windstar and a smaller cruise ship and a huge yacht called “Oasis”.
Yannis came down, checked us out and thanked us for staying with him. A bit of quirky guy but very nice and helpful.
Drive to the airport was about 30 minutes so a couple hours to kill. Our flight was supposed to be at 1 but the plane didn’t even arrive until just after that. Had time to grab a bite to eat and a drink and just sit around.
Finally, everyone had to go through passport control and were then loaded onto a bus. We were in “group 1” for boarding but with easyjet that really means absolutely nothing….pretty much a free for all to get on the plane.
Surprisingly the flight was only a ½ hour behind schedule. 3 hours and 30 min flying time to London (Gatwick). Had a window seat which was great but just took off right to the north so didn’t really get to see much of the island. Good flight was interesting flying over eastern Europe and just clear enough to see the Alps then cloud the rest of the way into London.
Was going to check out the pub “Ye Old Six Bells” a 10 minute walk from the hotel but was raining and bloody cold so didn’t bother. Dinner at the hotel restaurant, which was OK. Crabcake appie, fish and chips for Ken, fried chicken for me, coffees 46 GBP’s…..so more than our most expensive and delicious dinner in Greece!!
Internet if 15GBP’s for 24 hours, so didn’t bother. Called Linds to give her the flight info etc.
Watched TV, which is something we’ve not done for 2 weeks….nothing exciting so didn’t miss it at all.
June 18 Fri
Air Transat/Thomas Cook flt 871 (codeshare)
Checked out and grabbed the shuttle to the airport by 7:30. Got thru the huge line up for check in. Time for breakfast…..full English!
Uneventful flight other than it being a very full plane. Dozed on and off.
Arrived in Vanc around noon. Linds picked us up and home!
Great trip and one day we’ll go back to Greece. So much to explore and islands to see….each one just a little different but all so beautiful.
My Travel Journals 