What a week! I was in Greece last week and it is the most phenomenal country I have ever seen.
I'll begin with the pre-flight excitement. Three days before I'm supposed to head to Paris to catch my flight to Athens, my cousin Brigitte decides to join us for the week. So I met up with her on Sunday in Paris where we spent the day around the Eiffel Tower, then slept in the Orly airport. Not the most comfortable, but we had to be up for 4am anyways.
We arrived in Athens around noon, got to the hostel, then spent the latter part of the afternoon sightseeing in the Acropolis. The views from the top were amazing. You could see all of Athens from up there, including the Temple of Zeus and the original modern Olympic Stadium. There are massive reconstructions and restorations going on to fix the crumbling Parthenon and other structures.
That evening, we met up with Melissa and her sister Susie and headed out for dinner. We went back to the same place we went for lunch (great real Greek salads and souvlaki, yum!). We were one of only three occupied tables. It took me no time at all to feel at home. And so when I switched places with Susie, I habitually threw my purse on the back of my chair. We were well through our dinner when I got up to use the washroom and noticed my purse was gone. Our waiter came over and said that two men had sat down at the table behind me, looked at a menu, then left.
They took my camera, passport, money, cards, cell phone, everything. This was the first time I have ever kept my passport in my purse, and of course when I get stolen from. It was a crazy night. We tried to see if they ditched the purse anywhere, but no luck. Once the police came, I went with them to the station and made a report. Once that was all over and done with, we went back to the hostel to check some emails. That's when I found out the thief was calling a bunch of contacts in my phone. I tried calling him from a payphone, but once a Greece number showed up he shut it off.
The next day was spent in the Canadian Embassy instead of on a boat to the Greek Isles. But I got a new, temporary passport in a day and by Wednesday, we were on the ferry towards heaven on earth. We stayed at the Far Out Hostel on the island of Ios. It was absolutely incredible. Within an hour of touching the island, we were on the beach with drinks in hand. Our room was giant, for only 12 euros per person/night. Best deal of life.
The village was about a 5 minute bus ride up from the beach. However, we missed the last bus the first night and walked up the giant hill. Took us a good half hour I think, but it was well worth it once we got to the town. The village has no addresses. The streets are white alleyways that wind in and around little white buildings with the classic Greek blue doors and shutters. We stopped at the famous Porky's for some gyros before heading into one of the bars.
We partied that night until closing time walked back as the sun was rising (and as the donkeys and roosters were wakening). Made it to our room just before 6am. And that was the earliest we went to bed all week. We got up around 10 and headed for the beach for a good nap under the sun. However, little did I know that the Grecian sun is strongest from 10am until 1pm... I had the burn to prove it. I fell asleep for two hours and turned my back a nice shade of tomato pink, while my front side remained a glowing white.
One of the days, we decided to rent ATVs and go around the island. We made the trek out to see Homer's tomb. Not much to actually see, but the view from the backside of the island was stunning, and the ride out there was a lot of fun.
So aside from the incident on the first night, the trip was incredible and I'm already itching to get back to the islands. The prettiest water and landscapes I have ever seen, and combined with the rich history of the islands, it made for a pretty amazing time.
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