Santorini, Greece
I arrived in Santorini on the afternoon of Tuesday, May 6 and stayed in a small hotel in Karterados village. Karterados is about 1 kilometer from Fira town which is the main town in Santorini – lots of shopping and excellent Greek food to be devoured.
A view of my patio at the hotel in Karterados
I woke bright and early on my first full day in Santorini and walked down to a family owned scooter rental company. Since I had never ridden a moped or motorcycle before, we decided it would be best to put me on a 4-wheeler. So… after signing some paperwork I was off for the day to explore the island on my new friend, the ATV.
I made my first stop in Perissa and collected some beautiful volcanic rocks on the black sand beaches. Then I toured down to Perivolos and waved at the many men who were staring at me – I wasn’t sure if they were amazed by my southern American beauty, or by the fact that I was this dainty little lady riding an ATV. No one was laughing at me, so I’m hoping it was at least a combination of both!
A couple shots of Perissa Beach
One of the many churches on the island
My bar in Perivolos (too bad it was closed)
A couple of shots from the road...
Next, I traveled to Akrotiri but excavations were closed, so I moved along to Faros to see the lighthouse and took some beautiful pictures while there. I then decided to take a break and chill at Red Beach for a couple of hours. While on my way to Red Beach, I stopped at a restaurant and ate a Greek salad, bread, and “sipped” on a glass of Ouzo for a bit. I forgot that Ouzo was the equivalent of black licorice, which I typically experience the gag reflex upon first whiff. Needless to say, sipping turned into shooting and thank goodness I had planned to sit on the beach for the next 2 hours. After the hike to the beach, I realized that I completely forgot to bring a towel with me so I just spread my clothes out and people watched for the remainder of the afternoon.
The Lighthouse
Some caves near the lighthouse
On the road, another church I stopped to explore
Red Beach
More Red Beach...
A view from somewhere along the road.
I can't remember what the name of this church is, but it sure was beautiful inside...
I then decided to travel up to Oia (Ia) for the remainder of the day and enjoy the sights of the cliffs and a beautiful sunset. Unfortunately, the sunset was hidden behind clouds so instead I sat at a deserted restaurant, drank an $8 latte, and chatted with a beautiful Greek man who was born and raised in Athens but moved to Santorini for work and the laid-back lifestyle. So, after a great chat and an overpriced latte (thanks to the tanking dollar), I headed back to the scooter rental and said goodbye to my ATV.
That evening I headed out to a traditionally late meal and had the fortune of having dinner and a drink with an Englishman named Graham. He found a plane ticket to Santorini 2 days before and decided to travel the Greek islands for a few weeks. We had great conversation and he shared pictures of his family and his dog, appropriately named Ouzo. This is when I realized that it would not have been silly of me to bring pictures of my beloved and much missed kitty cats! During dinner, the owner of the restaurant sat down and chatted with us for a bit. He then invited me to Greek dancing the following night and we made plans to meet.
The next day I woke up, had breakfast, and then headed to Fira for my 3 hour volcano tour. I managed to get a little sidetracked amongst all the jewelry shops and then realized that I had only 15 minutes to get down 600 steps to catch my boat to the volcano. Crap! Literally, donkey crap and a recent rain shower made the trip down the steps extremely cumbersome and I can’t tell you how many times I almost slipped and fell into the disgusting piles of poop. I made it down to the port 10 minutes late and watched my boat depart without me. However, there was one boat left which was headed in the same direction so they let me hop on board and I made it to the volcano.
The volcano was cool, but I have to admit that I was hoping to see flowing lava. Now, silly me… That’s what I get for not having time to do my research. Needless to say I took lots of pictures of rocks and I got a great hike out of the deal. We then headed to the “hot springs” which were not so hot. Again, I neglected to bring a towel so I decided not to jump in.
Leaving the island for the volcano
Ascending the volcano
From the top, rocks and sea
Me, taking a picture of me on the volcano
Pretty rock
Hot springs to the left of the church
Upon return, I had the option of riding a donkey or walking up the stairs, or taking the cable car. I originally intended to ride the donkey but after my walk down I decided it would be best to take the quick and clean route in the cable car. Once back up I walked around a little bit more, attempting to avoid the jewelry shops, and I ended up at Lucky’s eating a yummy chicken pita. This was no doubt the cheapest and busiest pita pit on the island, so I had to stop and experience.
After touring Fira, I walked back to my hotel and took a siesta. When I woke up I had a bit of a scratch in my throat but I headed back into Fira for a beautiful sunset. I sat down at one of the many cosmopolitan restaurants with an outdoor terrace and enjoyed a glass of wine while I watched the absolutely gorgeous setting sun. Plans for Greek dancing weren’t until midnight and as hard as I tried to stay awake I ended up falling asleep and missing a fun night out. Sorry to the guy that I just stood up!
Before sunset, a view from the restaurant
Another beautiful view from the restaurant
And, you just can't have enough photos of the sunset...
Mykonos, Greece
After a few days on Santorini, I headed to Mykonos for the weekend. We took a high speed ferry boat and arrived at the hotel in the afternoon. The hotel was located on the northeastern coast of Mykonos with the beach of Agios Stefanos in front of us. Unfortunately I woke up this the morning with another sore throat and a bit of a headache, so I decided to take it easy that afternoon. I chilled out around the hotel, took a nap, finished my book, and then went to bed.
A couple shots from my hotel balcony...
From the second floor roof of my hotel...
From the breakfast area of my hotel...
I arose bright-eyed and bushy-tailed the next morning and walked next door to the scooter rental place, rented an ATV for the next 2 days of my trip on Mykonos, and then headed out for the world famous beaches. I had every intention of taking a towel with me this day, but this time I managed to leave it at the scooter rental store, so once again I was without a towel for the entire day.
My trip to Mykonos came right at the change of the off/on season therefore it was pretty quiet throughout much of my beach trips. The beaches are fairly deserted in the morning hours, as most people are either still sleeping or nursing hangovers from the previous night’s partying.
The first beach I went to was Psarou Beach. At all the beaches, you have to pay somewhere between 6 and 12 euro for a beach chair and umbrella, so I just decided to lay in the sand next to the chairs. I spent about an hour at this beach and really enjoyed the visit. It was quiet but there was a really awesome restaurant/beach bar playing some relaxing music so I stayed to chill out for a bit.
My next stop was a quick one – I visited the beach at Platys Gialos. There wasn’t much room for laying on the sand as most of the beach was covered with beach chairs and umbrellas for rental. So, I just walked around, bought a bottle of water and then hit the road again. I then decided to head north because I was running low on cash. So I drove to Charo (Mykonos Town) and visited the windmills, Paraportiani, and Little Venice. I managed to find an ATM outside of the local cinema and then decided to head back to a couple of beaches.
The Windmills
From the outside patio of one of the restaurants in Mykonos Town
From the same patio, a view of the windmills
An intersection in Little Venice
A beautiful, blooming tree in Little Venice
The outside of Paraportiani
I visited Paranga Beach next. This was a nice but small beach with some exhibited nudity. At the same time that I arrived, a tour bus dropped off a ton of tourists so I didn’t hang out at the restaurant that I had planned to eat at. Instead I settled in the sandy beach and enjoyed some rays, people watching, and a few sets of bare breasts.
The view from Paranga Beach
The last beach that I went to this day was Paradise Beach. This is probably one of, if not the most popular beach on Mykonos. Lots of beach bars and restaurants, so I stopped to enjoy some sun and a glass of wine.
I then decided to take a trip inland to a village called Ano Mera. There wasn’t much going on here, but I was able to visit the Monastery of the Virgin Mary of Tourliani. This is a 16th century monastery which I believe last had work on it in 1767. The outside wasn’t so thrilling but inside, wow, I was definitely blown away.
Inside the church...
Outside the church...
After Ano Mera, I came home and cleaned myself up. I caught the bus into Mykonos Town, walked around, and went to dinner with some people that I met on the trip. Donna and Karen were a traveling mother and daughter, celebrating Karen’s recent graduation from college. We ate at a great little restaurant where we were shielded from the cold and wind. One of the three island pelicans came to visit while we were eating and of course he had a moment of glamour and fame. After eating, Donna, Karen, and I went to have a couple of drinks at Scandinavian Bar and then caught a taxi back home.
A shot from the road on my ride home from Ano Mera
Out to dinner with the pelicans!
Outside Scandinavian Bar with Donna and Karen
I woke up early the next day, had some breakfast and then went back to bed for a bit. The weather was a bit cruddy this day, overcast, chilly, and windy. So I figured taking a little nap before heading back out on the ATV wouldn’t hurt me. Late morning, I headed out to the beaches again.
My first stop was Elia on the southwestern part of the island. There was a nice restaurant here, but I took shelter over by a fairly deserted bunch of chairs and umbrellas owned by a local hotel. I remembered my towel this day, so I lay down on the sand and read my book for an hour.
Views at Elia...
I then headed to Kalo Livadi beach. The beach was okay but there was a contained fire burning so I headed up to the very cute restaurant and chilled out on the deck with my book and a drink.
From my chair on the patio of the restaurant
After finishing my drink, I drove to Kalafatis and hung out on the deck of their restaurant as well. I was able to watch a few windsurfers enjoy the windy conditions, while I relaxed on one of their comfy couches and drank a glass of white wine.
A road shot
A view at Kalafatis
View from my couch at the restaurant
The last beach that I went to this day was Lia, not to be confused with Elia. It was a beautiful ride down to this beach and once I got there, I was literally the only person there other than the restaurant and bar staff. So I sat down on one of their couches and read my book for a while. The manager of the restaurant, Panos, then brought me some frozen strawberry concoction and we sat and talked for about an hour. He was an enjoyable man to talk to – fluent in 5 languages. He told me that once I become fluent in multiple languages, including Greek, French, Italian, and Spanish, that I would be more than welcome to come back and work for him. Too bad Chinese is first on my list!
Women picking flowers on an overcast day at Lia Beach
I was quite tired from riding in the wind that day so when I got back I lay down for a nap. I woke up around 8pm, took a shower, and decided I wanted to hit the town. On my way down I ran into another lady who was traveling alone and told her that I was headed into town so she decided to come with. We had dinner and then went out dancing until 3am. The town was dead but the bars were open and I was in the mood to dance! I met a man who was actually born on Mykonos and still lived there at the age of 37! It was fun dancing with him, but the lady I was with got tired so we decided to leave. Bye, bye to another cute Greek man…
Athens, Greece
The next morning consisted of an air transfer to Athens. I was tired and annoyed once I realized that my alarm clock was not 20 minutes fast but 1 hour fast. So I was up way too early and wishing that I was still in bed!!! Once at the hotel in Athens, I took the opportunity to relax for about 30 minutes and then I hit the Metro station for an afternoon of touring the city.
This is a view from my hotel in Athens - not quite as nice as the others?
I took the metro to Syntagma Square and once out of the station I turned around to see the Parliament building.
It’s always fun to watch how serious the guards are in their duty – I could never have enough control to keep such a solemn look on my face!
I then took a nice stroll through the National Garden.
A couple of buddies "hanging out" in the National Garden.
A turtle being taken advantage of...
So I called 911 to report the incident, and these are the police officers walking away after arresting the turtle.
Whew... that was stressful. Now, back to some cool garden stuff.
And then I exited the National Garden and watched wild dogs chase cars down a busy street in Athens.
I ended up at the Panathinaikon Stadium – I guess this is the track where they ran at the Olympics?
And here's the stadium!!! I really didn’t do my homework or post-work on this but it was still pretty cool and I knew I must have been at some sort of attraction since there were other people taking pictures!
I think I should run the 800 meter on that track. I feel sure that I'll come in last like I always do - someone's gotta take the dirty jobs...
Shortly after the stadium, I walked back up to the Zapion Exhibition and Congress Hall.
Here, I hooked up with a young couple from Edmonton, Canada. They were super nice and we ended up walking around with each other for the remainder of the afternoon.
I am crossing the security line to get this picture. They were having some special event with really important people so we weren't allowed in. I'm not sure why, we were important and dignified!
We all had maps but none of us really knew where we were headed. The cool thing about Athens and the area we were in is that practically every corner you turn has some great historical building or site to stare and take pictures at!
So, next we headed over to Hadrian’s Arch and the Temple of Zeus.
Me in front of Hadrian's Arch
By the time we got to the Temple it was closed (or maybe that’s because it was Monday and everything seemed to be closed on Monday). Either way, we were still able to get close enough to take pictures and stare in awe at the magnificence of the structures. This was just the start though…
This is the top of one of the columns. The detail is amazing to me.
Next we walked over to and around Filopappos Hill.
On the way to Filopappos, on the walk outside the Acropolis, this man was playing his music box.
The Theatre was closed but we were able to make it up to the Monument of Filopappos and we took some great pictures up here.
This is a view of the Acropolis from the hill.
A view of the city from the hill...
Me, on the hill, with the Acropolis in the background
The Monument of Filopappos
We encountered this centaur playing the flute on our way around Filopappos Hill
We walked up to another high point, the Areopagus, took some awesome pictures, and had some great laughs at the people hanging out up there. We took a few pictures of the Acropolis and the sunset.
A view of the Acropolis from the Areopagus
A view of the sunset from the Areopagus
More sunset from the Areopagus...
Trying to get a picture of me with the sunset behind
A picture of me and the sunset in Athens
We then headed back to Melissa and Jason’s room for a quick change into some warmer clothes before going to dinner. Getting to dinner that night was quite the experience – I had received a recommendation of some places within walking distance of where they were staying and we ended up walking into a crazy gang event of some sort. It was very scary and the men there were not nice at all. We quickly got out and made it back to familiar territory, and then sat down for a beer and dinner. At this point, I managed to lose my voice which remained lost for the rest of the trip! I was hoping that after-dinner ice cream would help but no such luck. So, Melissa and Jason walked me back to the Metro station and we said our goodbyes.
The next morning I rose early and decided to tackle the day even though I had no voice. I ate breakfast and then walked over to the Acropolis. Again, I really didn’t know where I was going so I ended up meandering along some streets and found one of the entrances to the Acropolis.
A cathedral being remodeled in the Plaka
This is a beautiful entrance to the Cathedral. I couldn't actually go in because this happened to be the one day that I was wearing shorts and they asked that you not enter if wearing shorts.
The Acropolis was absolutely amazing. The pictures below can hopefully help to describe the magnificence of the structures as I’m not sure my words would do them justice.
Now in the Acropolis, this is the Church of Saint Nikolaos
Looking out from the church of Saint Nikolaos
The Sacred Caves
I must think I'm going to get better at this self-portrait thing!
Sanctuary of Aphrodite and Eros
This was a friend that I made while walking around the Acropolis this morning - he followed me for a bit until some more enticing tourists caught his attention.
And this guy couldn't keep up
Nor could these guys!
The choregic monument of Thrasyllos
The Theatre of Dionysos
This is not Broadway
Odeum of Herodes
Ascending to the Temple of Athena Nike
The Temple of Athena Nike
The Parthenon
Me standing in front of the Parthenon
The other side of the Parthenon
A view of the Temple of Zeus from the top of the Acropolis
The Erechtheion
A side view of the Parthenon
The other side of the Erechtheion
Walking out of the Temple of Athena Nike, I fear for my safety...
A view of the Temple of Hephaistos from the Acropolis
After visiting the Acropolis, I went to Ancient Agora and saw some more amazing structures… pictures below.
On my walk to Ancient Agora - Doug Jacobs, this one is for you
The Church of the Holy Apostles
Corinthian Capital from Odeion of Agrippa
The Tholos, one of the most important buildings in Ancient Agora
Monument of the Eponymous Heroes
Walking up to the Temple of Hephaistos
Temple of Hephaistos
Here I go again!
Just playing with the camera
Emperor Hadrian
The Palace of the Giants
On my way to lunch I decided to first stop at the Central Market. You would think I couldn't eat lunch after this, but never fear!
After swearing to never eat meat again, I then sat down at a very crowded restaurant in the Plaka for lunch and had an oh-so-healthy meal of souvlaki and fries. After lunch, I walked it off and headed to Lycabettus Hill for some beautiful views of the city.
A couple views of the city from Lycabettus Hill. You could literally see everything.
I walked up these stairs to get to the cable car which takes you up Lycabettus Hill, now it is time to walk back down.
After Lycabettus Hill, I headed back to the hotel to freshen up and then went out for a bit of shopping and eating. I had a spectacular meal of lamb and potatoes this evening. After my meal I shopped a bit more and then managed to get lost. But, I was able to catch some beautiful views of the Acropolis, Hadrian’s Arch, and the Temple of Zeus at night. A lovely man gave me directions back to Syntagma Square and I was happily on my way (after very cordially turning him down for a fun night on the town). Oh these Greek men are just relentless! Back at the hotel, it was time to pack up my bag again, in order to catch my early morning transfer to Istanbul.
Istanbul, Turkey
Okay, so now in Istanbul this was a pretty drastic change from my Greece vacationing. The city is HUGE and since I didn’t come prepared with a plan or even a map, I was a little lost from Day 1. The first afternoon I spent time walking around and saw a couple of beautiful mosques. I didn’t take any pictures this day as it seemed that no one else was taking pictures, so I didn’t want to be the one to stand out (as if I didn’t already). I pretty much just browsed the area for the afternoon and attempted to get my bearings. I then found a cute little café and treated myself to a “pizza” and the best selling Turkish beer, Efes Pilsen, for dinner.
A view from my hotel in Istanbul, it just keeps getting better!
The next day I set out for a tour of the town and my first stop was the Grand Bazaar. I am not a huge shopper, but wow, this place was amazing. With over 4000 shops to peruse, many of which contained gorgeous jewelry and rugs, I lost track of time just slightly! I was offered many glasses of tea and coffee during my visits to the stores and I definitely got my fill of apple tea, boy it was yummy. A few hours later, I managed to drag myself out of there with a couple of purchases in hand, and I moved on to some of the more beautiful sights of the Old Town.
Shopping at one of the jewelry stores in the Grand Bazaar
Shopping at a rug store in the Grand Bazaar. This is Mehmet, my date for the evening.
A view from the balcony at Mehmet's family's hotel
From the balcony, the top of the Blue Mosque
I first visited the Blue Mosque. Here I was accosted by a man claiming that his grandfather was inside praying and that he’d like to see me when I came out. He owned a shop right outside of the exit and wished for me to stop by after my visit for tea, backgammon, and an English lesson. I very kindly blew him off when I exited… I had more sight seeing to do!
Hagia Sophia
Sultan Ahmet Camii (Blue Mosque)
Inside the Blue Mosque
Children playing inside the Blue Mosque - there is an exception for noise I guess
Inside the Tomb of Sultan Ahmed
The sign on this monument says "This stone pillar is all that remains of a Byzantine triumphal arch from which road distances to all corners of the empire were once measured. Dated IV Century A.D."
After visiting the Blue Mosque, I visited the Basilica Cistern. What an amazing sight – I am still in disbelief at how this thing was built!
Inside the Cistern
One of the Medusa heads at the back of the Cistern. This one is upside down - there is still debate on why this is the case, but the most widely believed reasoning is that if the head upside down, it would ward off evil spirits.
The second Medusa head is sideways. Still unclear why it is oriented this way...
After the Cistern, I then headed back to hotel room to relax, check email, and get ready for my late-night date with Mehmet. I won’t go into detail about the date – I will just simply say that after a few drinks he was not so cute anymore and I asked him to take me home. Ugh, what was I thinking?
My first drink with Mehmet
The next day I took a walk along the Bosphorus and visited a few more mosques, the Spice Market, and Topkapi Palace.
Suleymaniye Mosque - under reconstruction
Burial ground outside of the mosque
Due to the reconstruction efforts, we were only allowed into a small portion of the mosque
The New Mosque
Inside the New Mosque
These mosques are huge!
Views across the Bosphorus
The New Mosque with Suleymaniye Mosque in the background. Mosques are on almost every corner in this city.
The next series of pictures are from Topkapi Palace. I rented an audio cassette and felt sure that I would remember the various buildings and their explanations, but no such luck.
The entrance to Topkapi Palace - The Gate of Salutations
Some stuff...
A few kitchen utensils
Entrance to?
Another building on the grounds
A sundial...
Entrance to another important building
Inside that important building
The palace was huge and my feet were killing me, so I decided to head home for the remainder of the afternoon. And, that's the end of the fun pictures!
I would recommend to anyone that is not familiar with the Muslim religion to take some time to appreciate its beauty. For the most part it is an amazing religion outside of the fact that women have no rights. Fortunately, I didn’t run into any extremists while I was in Turkey – just the MANY men who refused to take no for an answer. This is where being an expert bitch came in handy…
I was glad that Istanbul was the last leg because if I was still in Greece when it was time to come home, I may have missed my plane. All in all, my trip was spectacular. Now, I think I will stick to the Americas for my next couple of trips while I wait patiently for the dollar to come back. Stay tuned!
