Athens Crash Course

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Athens Crash Course

A short hop into the big city was enough to see the Acropolis.

Most backpackers will agree that Athens is just another big city with nothing more to do than see the Acropolis. The beauty of the Greek Isles had soaked up so much of our time that Athens was a short [but enough] venture. We arrived from Mykonos into the Rafina port at 5am awaiting the first circuit of buses to transport us into the city centre about 45 minutes away. In Athens, we first got lost in the Greek alphabet, then found the train station, booked train tickets to Patras, left our bags, and ventured to the Acropolis. In Athens, the underground tube stations are museums with precious static displays. A newly designed underground tube momentarily arrived and transported us to the Acropolis stop where we got off and got lost. Finally making way to the entrance with a lady from Barcelona, I paid €6 to walk up and through the historical ruins of the Parthenon, Theatre of Herodes Atticus, Theatre of Dionysos, and Erechtheion.

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Corfu Via Igoumenitsa

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Hoping over to Corfu Island

First impressions of Greece

At 10am my ferry arrived into Igoumenitsa, Greece with scattered showers and hardly any sun. I got off the port and didn’t have to fuss with the passport thing, i guess Greece doesn’t care. I walked around Igoumenitsa for awhile searching for a place to stay and finally settled into Hotel Acropolis, which was a basic accommodation near the port with rooms including views of the ocean. Igoumenitsa wasn’t such a bad place to spend a day afterall. After I settled in I immediately devoured a gyros pita and got on with the remainder of my day… hoping over to Corfu.

When I arrived into Kerykya, Corfu’s main port city, I was wondering why I every made this decision. The weather was slightly worse and there was hardly much to do besides walk around. So that’s what I did. I walked up along the Old Fortress area never actually finding it, but instead filled my appetite with local fresh produce from the farmers market. I grabbed some bananas and oranges and just sat down for awhile watching Greek people interact.

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A Cloudy Day In Mykonos

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Almost MyKyno Island….

The party island before the party and beautiful people.

Mykonos is definitely a luxury image flattering resort for the young & beautiful. Not only is it a place where people strut their hot bods but definitely a Mecca for gay men. On the island there are exclusive resorts and beaches, some nude, some gay, and some with hedonism. Using my imagination was the most I could do, as it was slowly starting to pick up for the summer. With hardly many people on the island, there were still enough bars in full swing and locals to hang out with. Many of the bars were very classy decorated lounges spinning house and trance. Bar hopping around town is like walking through a maze, and even sober you still get lost. I can’t imagine what it’s like when your tipsy.

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Stunning Santorini

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Stunned In Santorini

Volcanic island, beautiful architecture, warm weather, what more can you ask for?

On BlueStar Ferries from Naxos to Santorini, I ran into Dustin & Adam who also study in London. Elizabeth and I, connected with their accumulated 9 travelers into a whopping adventurous 11. Once we set foot off the ferry you better believe we used the best bargaining tactic possible with our large group. By the help of Blair and Nat’s experienced bargaining, we scored an 8 EURO per person/per night spot in a villa just outside of the centre of Fira. At this point Santorini was escalating up to the plateau of our trip and…. it just so overlooked a breathtaking volcano.

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Relax Us In Naxos

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Time for Naxos

Temple of Apollo opened the door to a relaxing two days.

From Samos we jumped onto the largest Clycade, Naxos, at 10pm with an ideal offer for accommodations awaiting us at the port. Our accommodations were close to the Kastro (old Venetian area), Agios Georgios beach, and even included a view of the Agean. At this point we hadn’t stayed in one place for more than a day since Istanbul, so Naxos for two nights at €10 per night per person was a natural decision. During the two days I walked around the town of Hora, up to the Temple of Apollo, around the Kastro, and to Agios Georgios beach. Basically my main objective for the island was to just chill out and enjoy the nice weather. Mostly locals were around town providing a peaceful time. I should’ve rented a moped at the time, but I was saving that idea for upcoming Santorini.

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Kusadasi to Samos [Turkey to Greece]

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From Asia to Europe, Turkey to Greece, Kusadasi to Samos by Ferry

An expensive ferry ride, a 10k sprint, and finally sun!

At 8am from Kusadasi, Turkey we hopped onto the only daily ferry to Greece. It was the deal of a lifetime. The less than 10 mile ride, 1-hour long ferry to Samos, Greece was only $35.00!!!. It was so amazing that when I hiked over to the other side of the island, swimming back to Turkey would’ve been faster. There are some serious border issues between the two countries and tourist reap all the hassle. Not to mention, my American passport was questionable that an official straight faced phone call needed to be made. Absolutely bullshit!…. these passport control people… its all a huge front. They checked only my backpack, thank god, because all the illegal items were in the other bag….hah! I guess the trouble all started because I apparently look Turkish. So now I have permission to say I’m a Turkish tourist in addition to the popular Japanese I’ve been constantly getting.

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Kapadokya Cave Living

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Touring Kapadokya

A visit to remains of an ancient cave civilization

From Istanbul we departed on an overnight bus to Ugrup, Kapadokya where we rested for one hour, put our bags in our hotel and started the first leg of the Kapadokya tour. Day one we toured Devrent-the imagination valley, Avanos, Zelve, Causin, Goreme, Canak Somlekci in Avanos-a pottery factory, and Uchisar. The tour provided historical as well as geological information about the caves & rock formations. The layers of rock on top of the soft hardened mud are puzzling. The formations are explained by volcanic ash below harden volcanic rock and the erosion of the ash which supports the rock below. Each year the rock formations grow up or rather the volcanic ash below the rocks erodes down into the stream, hence the ground is sinking.

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