Our 10 days in Greece were great. We spent a couple of nights in Athens to tour around Plaka and the Acropolis. Along with plenty of walking, as we are now in a country who's currency is the Euro (and our dollar is doing TERRIBLE comparatively) and so we are back to staying at cheap hotels which aren't in the most convenient locations, we enjoyed many great Gyros and Greek ambiance.
I was determined to see Greece without having to take any ferries. I discovered how bad I feel on ferries in South America, and didn't want to spend anymore time of our trip on one if at all possible. After talking with Linda in Istanbul, we discovered there was plenty to see on the mainland and the large island of Peloponnese (connected to mainland by a bridge). We rented a car from the Athens airport and set off North towards Delphi and Meteora.
Delphi is a very ancient site (~600BC - one of the oldest sites we have been to) which was home to an Oracle. It is set up along a very steep mountain with amazing views, cobblestone streets and friendly locals and cafes. Great spot. We camped that night to save a little money. Mike got to gawk at a bunch of old vintage cars that were stopping through the town on a race through the mountain roads. This gave him so much joy, he still hasn't stopped talking about the 'swan' he is going to make out of his rusty Corvair when he gets home!
The ride around Delphi was up, around and down steep and dramatic mountains. We definitely were surprised by the diversity of the countryside. The mountains continued for quite a few more hours before arriving in Meteora. We've always seen photos of this amazing location, but actually seeing it for yourself was absolutely breath-taking. The huge granite-looking steep and pointy mountains were topped with old historic Monasteries. There used to be ~26 of them, but now only 6 which you can actually hike up to and explore. Even though it was quite a bit of extra driving to get all the way up to Meteora, it was definitely worth the drive as it was a completely unique site.
From Meteora, we made the big drive all the way to Olympia which was the original site of the Olympics back about 2,500 years ago. We didn't explore the ruins, just enjoyed staying in the nice little town for the night on our way down to the Mani region of Peloponnese.
As soon as we arrived in the first town of the Mani region we knew we needed to stay more than one night. It was amazing. No tourists, quiet, laid-back, cobblestone street and houses, wild flowers and some of the best Greek food we had discovered. It reminded us a lot of our favorite region in Italy, the Amalfi coast. Same feel, but Greek. What a discovery. We spent our time laying out by our lovely infinity pool (all to ourselves), eating too much Moussaka, exploring the small stone villages and basking in the ambiance or Greece.
Even though we wanted to spend a third night in our great find, we thought we better explore the town of Nafplio as it was stated in our guide book to be one of the most beautiful Greek towns. It was another gem, but of course with that title came many more tourists.
We have plenty more photos, but they are on our other camera. Hopefully we can post them soon!
I was determined to see Greece without having to take any ferries. I discovered how bad I feel on ferries in South America, and didn't want to spend anymore time of our trip on one if at all possible. After talking with Linda in Istanbul, we discovered there was plenty to see on the mainland and the large island of Peloponnese (connected to mainland by a bridge). We rented a car from the Athens airport and set off North towards Delphi and Meteora.
Delphi is a very ancient site (~600BC - one of the oldest sites we have been to) which was home to an Oracle. It is set up along a very steep mountain with amazing views, cobblestone streets and friendly locals and cafes. Great spot. We camped that night to save a little money. Mike got to gawk at a bunch of old vintage cars that were stopping through the town on a race through the mountain roads. This gave him so much joy, he still hasn't stopped talking about the 'swan' he is going to make out of his rusty Corvair when he gets home!
The ride around Delphi was up, around and down steep and dramatic mountains. We definitely were surprised by the diversity of the countryside. The mountains continued for quite a few more hours before arriving in Meteora. We've always seen photos of this amazing location, but actually seeing it for yourself was absolutely breath-taking. The huge granite-looking steep and pointy mountains were topped with old historic Monasteries. There used to be ~26 of them, but now only 6 which you can actually hike up to and explore. Even though it was quite a bit of extra driving to get all the way up to Meteora, it was definitely worth the drive as it was a completely unique site.
From Meteora, we made the big drive all the way to Olympia which was the original site of the Olympics back about 2,500 years ago. We didn't explore the ruins, just enjoyed staying in the nice little town for the night on our way down to the Mani region of Peloponnese.
As soon as we arrived in the first town of the Mani region we knew we needed to stay more than one night. It was amazing. No tourists, quiet, laid-back, cobblestone street and houses, wild flowers and some of the best Greek food we had discovered. It reminded us a lot of our favorite region in Italy, the Amalfi coast. Same feel, but Greek. What a discovery. We spent our time laying out by our lovely infinity pool (all to ourselves), eating too much Moussaka, exploring the small stone villages and basking in the ambiance or Greece.
Even though we wanted to spend a third night in our great find, we thought we better explore the town of Nafplio as it was stated in our guide book to be one of the most beautiful Greek towns. It was another gem, but of course with that title came many more tourists.
We have plenty more photos, but they are on our other camera. Hopefully we can post them soon!
When going to Prague, it's important to look the part. This is Mike's best attempt. I'm impressed.
Exploring the lovely town of Mani
Pelopenesse is absolutely beautiful
Lots of cats in Greece
Enjoying our pensione to the fullest
Mike couldn't stay out of the pool
Amazing small towns along the whole island
I'm feeling pretty good about our view of Meteora
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