Greece

We left the beautiful city of Istanbul for an overnight train to Thessonaliki, Greece (near the top). We paid second class fare and ended up with the cutest little cubby room with two beds in it. Hard to describe, but quite a step up from Egyptian first class! We arrived the next morning to snow and cold, so we decided to move on to a warmer part of Greece. While we waited in the only caffeteria-style place with seats, we were forced to inhale the cigarettes FROM EVERY SINGLE PERSON in the giant room for 2.5 hours. Either this or sit outside in the cold. Everyone here smokes, REALLY smokes. I have never seen anything like it, in any city that I have ever visited. Bizarre that a first world country would allow people to smoke indoors. Later on a six hour bus ride ended us in Delphi, a wonder on our list, and we found a perfect hotel for a reasonable price. We spent the evening relaxing and enjoying this little resort town that had the most beautiful mountains. It reminded us of home!

The next day we got up early and walked to the ruins. For four hours we hiked through the mountains to see an archaeological site on Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis. "Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and it was a major site for the worship of the god Apollo. His sacred precinct in Delphi was a Panhellenic sanctuary, where every four years athletes from all over the Greek world competed in the Pythian Games." Really neat ruins and the surrounding areas were such a pleasure to walk through. Mountains galore! The weather was also a blessing, we had to carry our coats. Throughout our whole trip I think we have only had two or three days of rain! We finished off the sights with a trip to the museum to see the rest of the well preserved ruins. Took lots of great photographs. While we were there we attempted to find chicken souvlaki, but were dismayed (and not totally surprised) to discover that this platter does not exist. Someone told us to go to China if we wanted rice. I thought to suggest places he should go. We enjoyed rabbit and rice (finally) and the best Greek salad we have ever tasted. Not stingy on the Feta, let us tell you!

The next day we took a three hour bus ride to Athens and found the apartment of the girl we where staying with. We met many of her friends, some of who spoke English and some who didn't. We enjoyed their company (when they spoke to us) amidst the chain smoking in the apartment. One guy was even born in Calgary and lived there till he was five! They shared a cake with us that had a coin in it for one lucky person. It is considered a tradition here in Greece. We were very lucky to be staying downtown for free, as we are soon discovering that Europe is MUCH more expensive than the Middle East (not surprisingly). We talked with some of our host's friends who said that it is quite expensive to live in Athens now since they changed over to the Euro. Apparently all the prices are marked the same as before, except now they are in Euro's which is a much higher price than their previous currency. Everything has gone up except for their salaries, which have stayed the same! So going out for coffee, dinner or drinks can add up very quickly. Unfortunately we came at the wrong time of the year to go to the islands, so we decided to head to Kalambaka for a night. Aboard the train we met a really nice guy who told us all about Island living. Aparently people pay $15 per drink at a night club and it can be quite the party place to be. Greeks also do things differently from anyone else. Most don't eat dinner until 10pm at night. I told him we ate at 5:30 and he thought I was talking about a late lunch. Too funny! He said that Greeks are very stubborn and that is why many still smoke inside despite the laws!

Once off the train, we were greeted by a little old man on a scooter. He asked if we were looking for a place to stay, and we said yes. He instructed us to follow him to his hotel as he scooted on up the street. He took us up to what appeared to be his apartment converted into a hostel. He was trying to charge us far too much, and kept boasting about the hot water and heat, as though these were selling points. We told him we were going to look around, and at that point he took us to a sister hotel that was much nicer, and we negotiated the price to much less than he was asking for! The reason for coming to this town, was to go and see Meteora, several monasteries built into the mountains. We took a taxi up to the top, and started climbing. When we reached the monastery, we were instructed to put on skirts overtop of our jeans. Apparently men aren't permitted in shorts, and women are not permitted in pants (or pantaloons as they called them!). Very old fashioned, but of course we complied. The monastery was really fantastic and it is still being used to this day. So unique to be built right into the mountain! Really breathtaking views and a unique way to live. In the musueum was one of the original works of Plato!!! We decided to trek down the mountain on foot, so we could take in the beauty. After being in so many cities, we really cherish being in nature as much as possible. It only took us about two hours to return to the hotel!

Back in Athens, we made our way to the Acropolis and the Parthenon which is world famous. We walked around and took in the ruins, reading about Nike and the temple built for her. They are under construction currently redoing the last construction job from the late 1890's. Sometimes I wonder if they just left things alone for awhile...We enjoyed hunting down the rest of the ruins that surround the great Acropolis. It was very beautiful, but has deteriorated more than a little bit. Unfortunately the museum is currently closed and is under construction, like everything we visit! If you just close your eyes for a moment it is not hard to imagine an ancient people living life and enjoying this city. It is wierd to think of how long ago these ruins were built.

While making our way around the surrounding ruins we bumped into an adorable Asian mother and daughter traveling from L.A. for just three days in Athens (the mom is a flight attendant). We instantly bonded, and decided to wonder together for the rest of the day. We skimmed through the tourist area and the fancy shops: Gucci, Prada, Dior, etc. passing along the way the countless African immigrants selling the knockoffs outside the stores. We also visited the spice bizaar, and got some souvlaki kababs. It was really the cherry on our sundae, as this city has been a bit devoid of color. The Greek people have been very nice and friendly, on the whole, although the girl we are staying with is not. Her roomate, however, cooked a local dish of beans and carrots and offered to share it with us. So sweet. We have really enjoyed this beautiful country and hope to be back soon to visit the rest.