Santorini, Greece
Showing posts with label greece. Show all posts
Showing posts with label greece. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
Around Santorini
While the capital town of Fira has great views and lots of shops, the rest of Santorini offers a draw as well.We took a few side trips from Fira to see as much of the island as we could.
Our first trip was a bus ride (on the local bus system, which is pretty good, and stops in Fira) to Kamari - a black-sand beach on the southeast side of Santorini. It took 25 minutes, and cost 1.80 Euros each person, each way. Saying "black-sand" is a bit of a stretch. The beach is volcanic, it's black, but it's pretty rocky. I found it beautiful, but quite hard to walk on. Chairs line the beach, but we were unsure if you had to pay to use them, so we (uncomfortably) put our towels down on the rocks. We also tried the slippery slope into the water for a photo op. It was cool, but hard to stand in (the rocks were slick and hard on the feet.)
There was some shopping in Kamari, and a few restaurants to chose from. We picked one with beach-side seating and had some decent food.
Another day, we walked (in what seemed like an entirely uphill climb) 20 minutes to the closest city to Fira, a suburb, called Firastefani. I'll say that this town offered some of the best photo ops - with a lot of the traditional blue church domes that grace almost every Greek guidebook. Plus, it was a chance to escape the hoards of cruise ship passengers in Fira, and get a look at how people live on the island. There are a few hotels here, as well.
Lastly, we took the local bus again to the northern city of Oia (pronounced ee-ya). Oia is renowned for its sunsets. Actually, short of the sunset, the town is almost the same as Fira. Cobbled walkways. Lots of shops. Lots of restaurants. Lots of people. But there is an old stone fort, where people gather an hour before sunset to watch the show. And what a show it is. There was resounding applause at the end. Poor BF - I can't imagine how many sunsets I've made him sit through now. (But I think, secretly, he enjoys them as well.) Folks, you've really got to take the time to appreciate the small things like sunsets - even in your own back yard.
Overall, I think we chose the right Greek island to visit, and we chose to stay in the right town on that island. (Firastefani is for those that want quiet, Oia is a long bus ride to anywhere else, and Fira is the center of the action - what action there is, anyway).
Now, the last set of Greek photos. Everyone have a wonderful weekend!
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Santorini Blue
So from Athens, we hopped a teeny plane to the island of Santorini, Greece and landed on a teeny airstrip with more than a teeny bit of wind. (The island's weather forcast usually includes "wind")
We took a cab from the miniscule airport to the center of the capital town of Fira, where the Pelican Hotel, where we were staying, was located. When I say "center of town", understand that there's not much "town" to be the "center" of. The hotel was on a main road (there are possibly two of these), so while it was quaint and small with good service, there may be a noise issue for some on weekends. The beds were also hard as a rock (both hotels in Greece had hard beds) but when you walk yourself to death, sleep comes anyway.
A short block away from the hotel is the pedestrian-only walkways in Fira, lined with shop after shop after shop, with a few restaurants thrown in here and there. It lines the caldera (Santorini is built into the caldera of a volcano, which is now filled with water) and offers some of the most awesome views of the white buildings with blue accents against a blue sky. In fact, you can't spit in Santorini without hitting a view. There are domed churches everywhere.
If you start walking down any steps, be aware that you might be walking a while. The more than 550 steps lead down to the port. Back in tha' day, the only way to get goods from the port to the town was to haul them on the backs of donkeys up these steps. So if you want to relive the olden days, and smell like donkey, you can ride a donkey either up or down the stairs. I'm all for experiencing "traditional" things at a destination, but these are steep stairs, and the donkeys don't mind how close to the edge they get. So we decided to walk the stairs. Down. We took the available cable car ($5 Euro for a one-way trip) back up.
At the top of that cable car, there's a restaurant called Zaphora, which is probably the best we found on Santorini. The BF had souvlaki (meat on a stick) and I had chicken with those lovely roasted Greek potatoes that I had come to crave. There are great views from here, but often muted through the plastic window covers that stop the wind from creating a vortex of food and customers.
The Santorini sunset is one of legend. Every night around 6 p.m. everything stops, people line the walkways on the caldera, and they just watch. And wonder. And in my case, snap enough photos to fill a coffee table book.
Tomorrow, we'll venture outside Fira to the black-sand beach of Kamari and the clap-worthy sunsets of Oia.
Now, some photos of Fira.
We took a cab from the miniscule airport to the center of the capital town of Fira, where the Pelican Hotel, where we were staying, was located. When I say "center of town", understand that there's not much "town" to be the "center" of. The hotel was on a main road (there are possibly two of these), so while it was quaint and small with good service, there may be a noise issue for some on weekends. The beds were also hard as a rock (both hotels in Greece had hard beds) but when you walk yourself to death, sleep comes anyway.
A short block away from the hotel is the pedestrian-only walkways in Fira, lined with shop after shop after shop, with a few restaurants thrown in here and there. It lines the caldera (Santorini is built into the caldera of a volcano, which is now filled with water) and offers some of the most awesome views of the white buildings with blue accents against a blue sky. In fact, you can't spit in Santorini without hitting a view. There are domed churches everywhere.
If you start walking down any steps, be aware that you might be walking a while. The more than 550 steps lead down to the port. Back in tha' day, the only way to get goods from the port to the town was to haul them on the backs of donkeys up these steps. So if you want to relive the olden days, and smell like donkey, you can ride a donkey either up or down the stairs. I'm all for experiencing "traditional" things at a destination, but these are steep stairs, and the donkeys don't mind how close to the edge they get. So we decided to walk the stairs. Down. We took the available cable car ($5 Euro for a one-way trip) back up.
At the top of that cable car, there's a restaurant called Zaphora, which is probably the best we found on Santorini. The BF had souvlaki (meat on a stick) and I had chicken with those lovely roasted Greek potatoes that I had come to crave. There are great views from here, but often muted through the plastic window covers that stop the wind from creating a vortex of food and customers.
The Santorini sunset is one of legend. Every night around 6 p.m. everything stops, people line the walkways on the caldera, and they just watch. And wonder. And in my case, snap enough photos to fill a coffee table book.
Tomorrow, we'll venture outside Fira to the black-sand beach of Kamari and the clap-worthy sunsets of Oia.
Now, some photos of Fira.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Athens, Greece: Lycabettus Hill
When you visit the Acropolis, you can't help but notice how flat and expansive Athens is, except for this one hill that pokes up in the middle (aside from the hill you're on.) That, people, is Lycabettus Hill, and it offers some of the best views - if you have the stamina.
When you get off the metro station, you start to climb the large hill. Then you start to climb stairs. Then you climb some stairs. Oh, and then you climb some more stairs. Then, you stop and take a breath, and climb some more stairs. These stairs bring you to the funicular - a sort of tram that takes you to the top of the hill, where you'll climb a few more stairs. (Feel free to climb the whole way and not take the ride. Good luck to you.)
Atop Lycabettus Hill, you'll find a pricey restaurant, a bell tower, a church, some wind, a guy and his dog selling drinks to all the staired-out visitors, and some SPECTACULAR views. Especially at sunset. (You all know me and my fondness for sunsets.) Watching the sun go down over this ancient city is chill-inducing. And the view of the Acropolis in the pink light, and then all lit up against the black of night is a surreal, I-can't-believe-how-lucky-I-am-to-see-it experience.
Below are some photos from Lycabettus Hill. Tomorrow, we'll get on a plane and island hop to Santorini. You'll definitely want to return to see those photos!
Monday, April 07, 2008
Zeus Who?
You'd never know it from the PR machine that is the Acropolis, but there are other ancient ruins in Greece. Entrance to one such ruin is included in your ticket to the Acropolis, and it is the Temple of Zeus. (hint: if the wait for tix to the Acropolis is long, go to Zeus's temple first, and get your ticket here.)
While clearly not the primary tourist attraction, the site of Zeus's temple is large, fascinating, and offers a different view of the main attraction, the Acropolis - you can see the wall built around the Acropolis that makes it a strategic military point. (You can also see Zeus's temple from atop the Acroplis, fyi.)
What I found so jaw-dropping is that this particular site is reached by crossing a main road (pollution, anyone?), power and phone lines are hung everywhere, and it's really like a park in the middle of houses and businesses.
To reach Zeus's Temple, you pass under Hadrian's Arch (along with the phone lines), which was the entrance gate into the city, built by those power-mongering Romans.
Originally, there were over 100 columns that supported the Temple of Zeus. Now, there are only 15, and one column that was blown over in the 1800s and left on the site, which I think is kinda cool. It really gives insight as to how columns are built, and the column pieces look like neatly organized crackers on a snack tray.
If you have one day in Athens, just get a glimpse of this site from the Acropolis. If you have some time, however, this is a good photo-op stopover. And, an easy walk from the Acropli Metro Station. (Quick note about the Greek subway - it's super convenient. The more touristy areas have new stations and trains - thanks to the 2006 Olympics. But even the older trains (non air-conditioned) get you where you need to go.)
While clearly not the primary tourist attraction, the site of Zeus's temple is large, fascinating, and offers a different view of the main attraction, the Acropolis - you can see the wall built around the Acropolis that makes it a strategic military point. (You can also see Zeus's temple from atop the Acroplis, fyi.)
What I found so jaw-dropping is that this particular site is reached by crossing a main road (pollution, anyone?), power and phone lines are hung everywhere, and it's really like a park in the middle of houses and businesses.
To reach Zeus's Temple, you pass under Hadrian's Arch (along with the phone lines), which was the entrance gate into the city, built by those power-mongering Romans.
Originally, there were over 100 columns that supported the Temple of Zeus. Now, there are only 15, and one column that was blown over in the 1800s and left on the site, which I think is kinda cool. It really gives insight as to how columns are built, and the column pieces look like neatly organized crackers on a snack tray.
If you have one day in Athens, just get a glimpse of this site from the Acropolis. If you have some time, however, this is a good photo-op stopover. And, an easy walk from the Acropli Metro Station. (Quick note about the Greek subway - it's super convenient. The more touristy areas have new stations and trains - thanks to the 2006 Olympics. But even the older trains (non air-conditioned) get you where you need to go.)
Friday, April 04, 2008
Oooh Ouzo
I like to try to immerse myself in the local culture when I go on vacation, and in Greece, that means eating Greek food and drinking Greek drinks.The Greek food I liked the best was mousakka. It's a bit like lasagne, but with eggplant.
The Greek drink I disliked the most was Ouzo. (The pic to the left is of a colorful ouzo bar in the Plaka.) It is served cold, has a bit of a cloudy look to it, and tastes like licorice. If you like licorice, then you may like this drink. If you don't, like me, it may not be the most pleasant experience ever. But when in Greece . . .
These are photos of me trying Ouzo at a restaurant called Old Tavern Stamatopoulos. The ouzo set us back 5 Euros (which now would be what, about $10?). We ate dinner here, lured by the Greek music. The music was good, the food was "eh".
We tried some other restaurants in the Plaka - this is a pedestrian-only (and moped) area where shops are packed in side by side and restaurant peddlers stand in front of their establishment and try to lure you in. We were told not to fall for this, that if they have to peddle their wares the food wouldn't be so great. But, we were tired and hungry and the little old man was so, well, GREEK that we went in to the Hani Restaurant on Adrianiou Street. We got really lucky.
We took a seat inside (there's also outside seating) to take advantage of the a/c, but requested the window seat, so we could still sort of be outside and people watch. The little old Greek man even took our picture. I ordered my safe chicken, and the BF ordered roast beef. When the food arrived, we took a look at each others' plate and decided to switch. That beef was probably one of the top 2 meals I had in Greece, and among the least expensive (each meal was about 7 or 8 Euros.)I hope you all have a great weekend, with your drink and food of choice! :)
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Athens, Greece: The Acropolis
I realized that I posted some pictures of my Greece trip, but I didn't really TELL anything about it. I'm sure it's been keeping you all up at night, so for the next several days, I'll post about Greece.
The Acropolis:
The Acropolis ("high city") refers to a big hill in the center of Athens, Greece, with a temple to the city's protector, Athena. It's possibly the greatest monument of architecture in Europe.
From the Athens subway, it's a long walk up a steep graded hill to get to the base of the Acropolis site. However, when you get the first glimpse of the Parthenon, sitting high atop the Acropolis, it takes your breath away. It's hard to tear your eyes away and keep climbing. But climb you do.
It's clear that Europeans don't have the same tort law that Americans do, because the climb up to the ticket booth is fraught with age-old slippery stones. When you reach the ticket booth, you're almost too tired to go the rest of the way. But the doric columns of the Parthenon are calling to you. "Keep going, keep going". At the time we were there, a 12 Euro ticket gained entrance into the Acropolis, and included admission to a few other minor sites in Athens, including Zeus's temple.
I guess the Acropolis is a result of the modern world - there's a lot of scaffolding, a lot of reconstruction, and one building had been taken down completely to rebuild it. The Parthenon has probably had scaffolding in every picture taken of it for the last 10 years (but I tried to skillfully photograph it at an angle with no scaffolding.) When you reach the Parthenon, you should walk around it in its entirety, as each angle offers a different perspective. It's majestic. It's powerful. And it's survived for thousands of years despite every effort to destroy it by the morons of the world (it was a storage house for gunpowder at one point, and some gunpowder exploded, for example.)
The Erechtheion is the second-most preserved building, and the second-most interesting, in my humble opinion. The most photogenic part of the Erechtheion is the south porch, held up by columns that are shaped like women, the famous Caryatids. The originals are in the Acropolis museum, minus one, which is in the British Museum in London. (The Greeks want it back, by the way.)
You leave the Acropolis through the original entrance gate. There are some great Athens views from the gate.
Actually, the entire Acropolis offers some amazing views of Athens. The city stretches to the vanishing point, and shows how dense the city is. I think the Athenians would build houses on the Acropolis if the government would let them. The buildings sit right next to ruins, and it's an odd mix of old, kinda old, and new.
The BF and I visited the Acropolis twice. The first time we went, we'd been in JFK airport for 24 hours (because the morons at Olympus Airlines randomly changed flight times), we'd been on a plane for 10 hours, and we were pooped. While I was impressed the first visit, I feared that I'd been in a jet lag fog and had missed truly appreciating what I was seeing. Our first visit was in the late afternoon, which seemed the better time to go, as it was less crowded, though a bit more hazy. Our second visit was around 10 a.m., and was brighter sunshine, but packed with tour bus tourists. I don't think you'd want to go mid-day, as it's hot and dry, but you'd probably have the place more to yourself.
Also, you'd want to wear comfortable shoes with traction. Thousand-year-old stone walkways get pretty slippery when millions of people walk all over them.
There is a refreshment stand at the bottom of the Acropolis where the ticket booth is. The truth is that you're going to be tired and thirsty and fall into this tourist trap. The've got a captive audience (try the slushies. Mmmmm.) so the prices aren't discount, for sure. However, the time to your next cafe would be a half hour (plus the walking.)
Truly one of my top five coolest sites that I've visited. Photos below.
The Acropolis:
The Acropolis ("high city") refers to a big hill in the center of Athens, Greece, with a temple to the city's protector, Athena. It's possibly the greatest monument of architecture in Europe.
From the Athens subway, it's a long walk up a steep graded hill to get to the base of the Acropolis site. However, when you get the first glimpse of the Parthenon, sitting high atop the Acropolis, it takes your breath away. It's hard to tear your eyes away and keep climbing. But climb you do.
It's clear that Europeans don't have the same tort law that Americans do, because the climb up to the ticket booth is fraught with age-old slippery stones. When you reach the ticket booth, you're almost too tired to go the rest of the way. But the doric columns of the Parthenon are calling to you. "Keep going, keep going". At the time we were there, a 12 Euro ticket gained entrance into the Acropolis, and included admission to a few other minor sites in Athens, including Zeus's temple.
I guess the Acropolis is a result of the modern world - there's a lot of scaffolding, a lot of reconstruction, and one building had been taken down completely to rebuild it. The Parthenon has probably had scaffolding in every picture taken of it for the last 10 years (but I tried to skillfully photograph it at an angle with no scaffolding.) When you reach the Parthenon, you should walk around it in its entirety, as each angle offers a different perspective. It's majestic. It's powerful. And it's survived for thousands of years despite every effort to destroy it by the morons of the world (it was a storage house for gunpowder at one point, and some gunpowder exploded, for example.)
The Erechtheion is the second-most preserved building, and the second-most interesting, in my humble opinion. The most photogenic part of the Erechtheion is the south porch, held up by columns that are shaped like women, the famous Caryatids. The originals are in the Acropolis museum, minus one, which is in the British Museum in London. (The Greeks want it back, by the way.)
You leave the Acropolis through the original entrance gate. There are some great Athens views from the gate.
Actually, the entire Acropolis offers some amazing views of Athens. The city stretches to the vanishing point, and shows how dense the city is. I think the Athenians would build houses on the Acropolis if the government would let them. The buildings sit right next to ruins, and it's an odd mix of old, kinda old, and new.
The BF and I visited the Acropolis twice. The first time we went, we'd been in JFK airport for 24 hours (because the morons at Olympus Airlines randomly changed flight times), we'd been on a plane for 10 hours, and we were pooped. While I was impressed the first visit, I feared that I'd been in a jet lag fog and had missed truly appreciating what I was seeing. Our first visit was in the late afternoon, which seemed the better time to go, as it was less crowded, though a bit more hazy. Our second visit was around 10 a.m., and was brighter sunshine, but packed with tour bus tourists. I don't think you'd want to go mid-day, as it's hot and dry, but you'd probably have the place more to yourself.
Also, you'd want to wear comfortable shoes with traction. Thousand-year-old stone walkways get pretty slippery when millions of people walk all over them.
There is a refreshment stand at the bottom of the Acropolis where the ticket booth is. The truth is that you're going to be tired and thirsty and fall into this tourist trap. The've got a captive audience (try the slushies. Mmmmm.) so the prices aren't discount, for sure. However, the time to your next cafe would be a half hour (plus the walking.)
Truly one of my top five coolest sites that I've visited. Photos below.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Photos from the trip!
Hi all! I'm back. Greece was a nice break from the ordinary, and while "the guy" and I had our moments, mostly it was a success. The flight there was delayed 7 hours, which would make anyone fussy, and our flights back were also delayed. Stay out of New York airports if you want to actually get somewhere.
So, here are a few slide shows of my trip. I liked seeing Athens, but I like the photos from Santorini best.
Athens Part 1
Athens part 2
Santorini Part 1
Santorini Part 2
Santorini Part 3
So, here are a few slide shows of my trip. I liked seeing Athens, but I like the photos from Santorini best.
Athens Part 1
Athens part 2
Santorini Part 1
Santorini Part 2
Santorini Part 3
Friday, July 27, 2007
It's all Greek to Me
I know I haven't been posting a lot lately. Why? You wonder? Well, mostly, I got lazy. Also, it's summer, which means there are more things going on. There's "the guy", which means I'm spending time with him and not blogging.
But, as many of you seem to be interested in my travels, I thought I'd update you on the latest trip. "The guy" and I are going to GREECE in a few weeks! I don't know why, but I'm still amazed that this man is willingly going to travel to another country with me and be with me 24/7 for eight days. Two of those days will be spent together in airports. Eeek!
We will be spending three days in Athens, and then three days on the island of Santorini, which is supposedly one of the most beautiful islands in the world. There's a volcano, some black sand beaches (never seen one before), beautiful towns and scenery, etc.
To say I'm excited would be an understatement. :)
But, as many of you seem to be interested in my travels, I thought I'd update you on the latest trip. "The guy" and I are going to GREECE in a few weeks! I don't know why, but I'm still amazed that this man is willingly going to travel to another country with me and be with me 24/7 for eight days. Two of those days will be spent together in airports. Eeek!
We will be spending three days in Athens, and then three days on the island of Santorini, which is supposedly one of the most beautiful islands in the world. There's a volcano, some black sand beaches (never seen one before), beautiful towns and scenery, etc.
To say I'm excited would be an understatement. :)
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