Carnival in Greece: Nikki's trip report
Mar 23rd, 2005, 12:51 PM
#22
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The Attalos Hotel has a wonderful location. We could walk everywhere we wanted, and there is a metro station very nearby for the trip to Piraeus, if you want to take a boat for a day trip to an island (as we did on our last day). Our room had a balcony with a view of the Acropolis and of Likavittos Hill. The hotel is not fancy in any way, but it is very clean and the people at the desk were helpful.
Mar 23rd, 2005, 12:57 PM
#23
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Nikki, thank you for another amazing read. I didn't think you could top your Paris report but this is brilliant: I'm saving it in my Greece file.
I was interested to read about the Greeks flying kites on Clean Monday to start Lent as we were in Bermuda this weekend and learned that Bermudians celebrate Good Friday by making and flying kites throughout the islands.
I was interested to read about the Greeks flying kites on Clean Monday to start Lent as we were in Bermuda this weekend and learned that Bermudians celebrate Good Friday by making and flying kites throughout the islands.
Mar 23rd, 2005, 01:46 PM
#24
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After lunch at a seaside restaurant below Delphi, we headed up through Central Greece toward Meteora. We crossed the cotton fields of the plain of Thessaly, which went on for a great distance. We passed gypsy encampments and were told by the guide that the gypsies work essentially as migrant farm labor, moving from planting to planting and harvest to harvest throughout the area. They are paid in kind: in potatoes, or in cotton, or in olive oil. They then sell the produce out of trucks around Greece. Back near Mycenae I had seen people selling oranges out of trucks and wished we could have stopped to buy some. The ones they served that day at lunch were the best oranges I have ever tasted. Well, except for the ones grown by my father's friend in California in the back yard. Long time since I tasted those, so these might have been better.
Here and there we passed sheep drinking from the irrigation ditches, tended by shepherds leaning on staffs. We passed a village where the church had an enormous stork's nest on the roof and were told that the storks arrive every year on March 25. So we were a little early, but we had to wonder about the birds' calendar.
There were places where I saw rows of boxes on the ground in the middle of fields, looking very much like mailboxes, and I asked the guide what they were. Learned they were beehives. We did see honey for sale along the roadside.
Another question answered by the guide: there are shrines along the roadside which mark the site of car accidents. These are sometimes shaped like small churches on pedestals but are always some type of enclosure containing icons and oil. If someone dies in an accident, the family will erect these as a memorial. If someone survives an accident, he or she will erect one as thanks for saving them. These are apparently an ancient tradition in Greece. Before Christianity, the memorials were erected to Hermes, the protector of travelers. Now the religion has changed, but the tradition is maintained.
The plain is flat and covered with farmland, and then the huge and strange rock formations of the Meteora appeared. Some trick of erosion has left them standing among the cotton fields. At the base, there is the town of Kalambaka, where we spent the night at the Divani Meteora Hotel. We walked into town and found an internet cafe overrun with hyperactive 13 year old Greek boys and checked our e-mail amidst the chaos. Then we stepped into a souvenir shop where an elderly couple were seated around a wood stove eating boiled eggs for supper and watching the news on the television. The gentleman followed us around and pointed to everything in the store for us to look at, to the point where it made us uncomfortable and we left. I hope he was able to get back to his supper in peace.
The next morning we toured two of the monasteries of the Meteora, one involving a substantial number of steps down to the bridge and up to the monastery. This was the Grand Meteoron. We also visited one which is currently a convent and I believe we were told that it was used in the James Bond movie "For Your Eyes Only", which I suppose I must now rent. This one involved minimal stair climbing. The natural setting of these pinnacle topping constructions is one of the most amazing things I have seen. The chapels were decorated with golden frescoes that made them look like jewel boxes inside.
The drive back to Athens was long and uneventful, mostly along the highway. We were dropped off at the Attalos Hotel and went to dinner at the Hermion Restaurant at 7 Pandrossou, not far from the Monastiraki metro. This had been recommended by my companion on the plane. Tel. 210 32.47.148. They have a web site at www.hermion.gr. There were people arriving after work dressed in business suits, and once again we were the only visible non-Greeks. We had a platter of assorted appetizers and then I had rabbit stifado with onions. There were musicians singing and playing bouzouki and guitar to add to the atmosphere. After a nice dinner we headed back to the hotel and were grateful that there would be no 7 AM wakeup call the next morning.
Here and there we passed sheep drinking from the irrigation ditches, tended by shepherds leaning on staffs. We passed a village where the church had an enormous stork's nest on the roof and were told that the storks arrive every year on March 25. So we were a little early, but we had to wonder about the birds' calendar.
There were places where I saw rows of boxes on the ground in the middle of fields, looking very much like mailboxes, and I asked the guide what they were. Learned they were beehives. We did see honey for sale along the roadside.
Another question answered by the guide: there are shrines along the roadside which mark the site of car accidents. These are sometimes shaped like small churches on pedestals but are always some type of enclosure containing icons and oil. If someone dies in an accident, the family will erect these as a memorial. If someone survives an accident, he or she will erect one as thanks for saving them. These are apparently an ancient tradition in Greece. Before Christianity, the memorials were erected to Hermes, the protector of travelers. Now the religion has changed, but the tradition is maintained.
The plain is flat and covered with farmland, and then the huge and strange rock formations of the Meteora appeared. Some trick of erosion has left them standing among the cotton fields. At the base, there is the town of Kalambaka, where we spent the night at the Divani Meteora Hotel. We walked into town and found an internet cafe overrun with hyperactive 13 year old Greek boys and checked our e-mail amidst the chaos. Then we stepped into a souvenir shop where an elderly couple were seated around a wood stove eating boiled eggs for supper and watching the news on the television. The gentleman followed us around and pointed to everything in the store for us to look at, to the point where it made us uncomfortable and we left. I hope he was able to get back to his supper in peace.
The next morning we toured two of the monasteries of the Meteora, one involving a substantial number of steps down to the bridge and up to the monastery. This was the Grand Meteoron. We also visited one which is currently a convent and I believe we were told that it was used in the James Bond movie "For Your Eyes Only", which I suppose I must now rent. This one involved minimal stair climbing. The natural setting of these pinnacle topping constructions is one of the most amazing things I have seen. The chapels were decorated with golden frescoes that made them look like jewel boxes inside.
The drive back to Athens was long and uneventful, mostly along the highway. We were dropped off at the Attalos Hotel and went to dinner at the Hermion Restaurant at 7 Pandrossou, not far from the Monastiraki metro. This had been recommended by my companion on the plane. Tel. 210 32.47.148. They have a web site at www.hermion.gr. There were people arriving after work dressed in business suits, and once again we were the only visible non-Greeks. We had a platter of assorted appetizers and then I had rabbit stifado with onions. There were musicians singing and playing bouzouki and guitar to add to the atmosphere. After a nice dinner we headed back to the hotel and were grateful that there would be no 7 AM wakeup call the next morning.
Mar 23rd, 2005, 01:52 PM
#25
Original Poster
Trish, I got so carried away by thinking about Leda and the swan that I forgot to tell you earlier that our evening at the Stoa Athanaton came to about one hundred euros, including dinner. The check was entirely in Greek, so I couldn't factor out what was food and what was wine and what, if anything, was a cover charge. It just seemed fair to me for a fascinating evening's entertainment.
Mar 24th, 2005, 04:10 AM
#29
Original Poster
The Divani Meteora Hotel is right at the entrance to the town of Kalambaka, so it is very convenient for walking into town. Some people on our tour were at the Amalia, which is much farther out of town, and less convenient if you have no car. Public areas were among the nicer ones we encountered. The room was fine. If I remember, it had a slight peculiarity in that the bathroom door didn't have room to open all the way, but that is a minor quibble. I wouldn't eat in the restaurant unless I were on a package tour and it was included.
There is a gym and indoor swimming pool downstairs, which we didn't use, but which would be nice.
There is a gym and indoor swimming pool downstairs, which we didn't use, but which would be nice.
Mar 24th, 2005, 06:30 AM
#31
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Hi Nikki,
Sorry, one more question. Did you feel pretty rushed through the sites on the 3 day tour, or did you feel like you had ample time to explore them?
I am so happy to see a report on the mainland and archaeology sites, thansk again for posting!!!
Sorry, one more question. Did you feel pretty rushed through the sites on the 3 day tour, or did you feel like you had ample time to explore them?
I am so happy to see a report on the mainland and archaeology sites, thansk again for posting!!!
Mar 24th, 2005, 09:13 AM
#32
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Hi Nikki. Thank you so much for sharing your trip report. Do you have a list of URLs and books which you found helpful while planning your Greek trip? One of my friends has been planning a Greece trip and I know she'd appreciate such a list.
Keep on writing! You do a magnificent job. I, for one, prefer lengthier trip reports which give a good sense of place. Consequently I'm so glad I found your report.
Sharon
Keep on writing! You do a magnificent job. I, for one, prefer lengthier trip reports which give a good sense of place. Consequently I'm so glad I found your report.
Sharon
Mar 24th, 2005, 11:08 AM
#34
Original Poster
Jill, I only felt rushed once: at Mycenae. The guide had told us we had a certain amount of time, and then midway through, she announced that we had to be back at the bus earlier. No reason was given. At all the other sites I felt as though I had ample time to explore.
Could I have spent more time if I had been on my own? Certainly. Was it necessary? No, and I did not feel deprived.
Could I have spent more time if I had been on my own? Certainly. Was it necessary? No, and I did not feel deprived.
Mar 24th, 2005, 11:23 AM
#35
Original Poster
Sharon, I got a lot of information from Matt Barrett's website at www.greektravel.com.
I also found the following guidebooks particularly useful:
Time Out, Athens
Eyewitness Travel Guides, Greece Athens and the Mainland
Let's Go, Greece
For background on the myths I read quite a bit of Edith Hamilton's Mythology. Also dipped into Homer's Iliad.
The Oxford History of Classical Art was interesting.
And I am a sucker for Plato, have been all my life, so I read the Euthyphro, Apology, Crito and Phaedo. Highly recommended for those who want to feel the ghosts of the foundations of critical thinking while walking through the foundations of the buildings in the ancient agora of Athens.
I also found the following guidebooks particularly useful:
Time Out, Athens
Eyewitness Travel Guides, Greece Athens and the Mainland
Let's Go, Greece
For background on the myths I read quite a bit of Edith Hamilton's Mythology. Also dipped into Homer's Iliad.
The Oxford History of Classical Art was interesting.
And I am a sucker for Plato, have been all my life, so I read the Euthyphro, Apology, Crito and Phaedo. Highly recommended for those who want to feel the ghosts of the foundations of critical thinking while walking through the foundations of the buildings in the ancient agora of Athens.
Mar 24th, 2005, 01:47 PM
#36
Original Poster
Friday was our last full day in Greece. I woke up early and walked to the Central Market, just a few blocks from the hotel, to take pictures. There is an enclosed fish market and meat market and an open vegetable market across the street. The butchers were out in the aisles chopping up meat, and every part of every animal was displayed in the stalls. Not for the squeamish. I used up a couple of rolls of film. Looking now at the pictures of colorful spice bins and exotic candies and multi-hued olives, I wish I had bought some. I did stop at a stand selling pastries on the way back to the hotel and bought a delicious breakfast pastry containing bacon and cheese. I wished I had discovered these earlier in the week.
For our last day in Greece, we had hoped for good weather to take a day trip to the island of Aegina. It was beautiful and sunny and the warmest day of the trip, so we headed out on the metro to the port at Piraeus. We bought tickets at a ticket agency on the street and walked to the gate from which we were told the ferry would depart. We waited at a cafe and when no boat had showed up at the place we expected to see it fifteen minutes before the scheduled departure, we scrambled to find it. Turns out each gate has several piers, and the one with our boat was further away in a direction we hadn't been looking. Hopped on the boat with five minutes to spare. The trip was beautiful, we got a little sunburned on our arms and our faces, and we arrived at Aegina ready for lunch.
I had read that there were good fish tavernas behind the fish market, and had remembered the name of one from a guide book, so we followed the harbor until we came to the fishing boats. There across the street was the fish market, somewhat smaller than the one I had visited that morning in Athens. We walked to the rear and found the tiny restaurant called Agora. Nothing but fish, and the waitress brought us to the kitchen to show us what they had. I ordered octopus, which was grilled out front. The family which ran the restaurant had a stall in the fish market, so we were pretty sure everything was fresh. A colorful local crowd filled the tables indoors and out (although the smell of the fish market was less noticeable at the inside tables where we sat).
After lunch we took a taxi across the island to the Temple of Aphaia, located high on a hill. The driver waited while we explored the temple, which is beautiful and extremely well preserved, and while we admired the views of the sea in two directions. Then we returned to the town and spent the rest of the afternoon in a cafe on the waterfront eating ice cream and watching the boats and the motor scooters come and go. Took the ferry back to Piraeus and the metro back to Athens, grabbed a farewell gyro to eat in the room, and went back to the hotel to pack for our very early departure the next morning.
Packed up all my purchases in my carry-on bag, finding room for everything from the blue pottery to the sheep bell to the horseshoe I bought at the antique store in Delphi to bring my husband better luck at horses. Remembered my very first impression arriving in Greece at the airport, where I was taken aback by the sign in the terminal as we came off the plane. "Exit", it said. Simple enough in English, but there was a complicated looking Greek word underneath it. I figured this would be a tough country to navigate if I couldn't even read a simple word like exit. But sounding out the Greek letters, I realized that I knew the word after all. Exodus.
For our last day in Greece, we had hoped for good weather to take a day trip to the island of Aegina. It was beautiful and sunny and the warmest day of the trip, so we headed out on the metro to the port at Piraeus. We bought tickets at a ticket agency on the street and walked to the gate from which we were told the ferry would depart. We waited at a cafe and when no boat had showed up at the place we expected to see it fifteen minutes before the scheduled departure, we scrambled to find it. Turns out each gate has several piers, and the one with our boat was further away in a direction we hadn't been looking. Hopped on the boat with five minutes to spare. The trip was beautiful, we got a little sunburned on our arms and our faces, and we arrived at Aegina ready for lunch.
I had read that there were good fish tavernas behind the fish market, and had remembered the name of one from a guide book, so we followed the harbor until we came to the fishing boats. There across the street was the fish market, somewhat smaller than the one I had visited that morning in Athens. We walked to the rear and found the tiny restaurant called Agora. Nothing but fish, and the waitress brought us to the kitchen to show us what they had. I ordered octopus, which was grilled out front. The family which ran the restaurant had a stall in the fish market, so we were pretty sure everything was fresh. A colorful local crowd filled the tables indoors and out (although the smell of the fish market was less noticeable at the inside tables where we sat).
After lunch we took a taxi across the island to the Temple of Aphaia, located high on a hill. The driver waited while we explored the temple, which is beautiful and extremely well preserved, and while we admired the views of the sea in two directions. Then we returned to the town and spent the rest of the afternoon in a cafe on the waterfront eating ice cream and watching the boats and the motor scooters come and go. Took the ferry back to Piraeus and the metro back to Athens, grabbed a farewell gyro to eat in the room, and went back to the hotel to pack for our very early departure the next morning.
Packed up all my purchases in my carry-on bag, finding room for everything from the blue pottery to the sheep bell to the horseshoe I bought at the antique store in Delphi to bring my husband better luck at horses. Remembered my very first impression arriving in Greece at the airport, where I was taken aback by the sign in the terminal as we came off the plane. "Exit", it said. Simple enough in English, but there was a complicated looking Greek word underneath it. I figured this would be a tough country to navigate if I couldn't even read a simple word like exit. But sounding out the Greek letters, I realized that I knew the word after all. Exodus.
Mar 24th, 2005, 06:48 PM
#37
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Nikki
LOVED, LOVED , LOVED your report!
We are headed for Greece in May, husband and me and 15 of our friends we travel with annually all over the world. Greece is one of the last European destinations we have not been to and we are so excited.Now I am more excited after reading your fab report!!
Two questions:
1. My husband and I will go out on the the town while in Athens ( we love our friends dearly, but nightlifers, they are not!). After much research, we will go to Psiri for the nightlife. In addition to your experience at Stoa, if we were to wander the area, do you recommend a particular street(s) and other favorites? We are jazz lovers, but any kind of music is fine. We are 44( me) and 65( he, with the energy I swear of a 30 yr old and I'm not kidding); would you recommend a place(s) that are lively but not too overwrought with really young kids. Smoke and loudness don't bother us much. Should we just wander and soak up the street life?
Second question: As a group we have already arranged a private touring of Delphi on our third day in Athens. In addition to your most lovely description, any hints or tips to make our visit there even more special. With our guide, we can stay as long as we want, ask him anything,; it so flexible since it is just us. This place hold a special fascination for us; imagine a Pythian priestess reciting predictions in this very beautiful location!
Again, beautiful report and thanks a mil........
LOVED, LOVED , LOVED your report!
We are headed for Greece in May, husband and me and 15 of our friends we travel with annually all over the world. Greece is one of the last European destinations we have not been to and we are so excited.Now I am more excited after reading your fab report!!
Two questions:
1. My husband and I will go out on the the town while in Athens ( we love our friends dearly, but nightlifers, they are not!). After much research, we will go to Psiri for the nightlife. In addition to your experience at Stoa, if we were to wander the area, do you recommend a particular street(s) and other favorites? We are jazz lovers, but any kind of music is fine. We are 44( me) and 65( he, with the energy I swear of a 30 yr old and I'm not kidding); would you recommend a place(s) that are lively but not too overwrought with really young kids. Smoke and loudness don't bother us much. Should we just wander and soak up the street life?
Second question: As a group we have already arranged a private touring of Delphi on our third day in Athens. In addition to your most lovely description, any hints or tips to make our visit there even more special. With our guide, we can stay as long as we want, ask him anything,; it so flexible since it is just us. This place hold a special fascination for us; imagine a Pythian priestess reciting predictions in this very beautiful location!
Again, beautiful report and thanks a mil........
Mar 25th, 2005, 04:55 AM
#39
Original Poster
Tripgirl, I only know about the places we went to that I mentioned in the report. Didn't get to any jazz places; the restaurants we went to all had Greek music of various sorts. Wandering and soaking up the street life was fun for us, but we didn't stay out late enough to go from place to place.
Stoa Athanaton is not in Psiri, but it is quite near. However, it is not a place that can be experienced by just dropping in. At least on the night we were there (which was admittedly a Saturday night during Carnival) reservations were essential.
If you are going to Delphi on a day trip from Athens, you probably will not be driving the same route up or down Mount Parnassus that we took. That was a very beautiful drive, and I don't know what the drive is like approaching from the other direction. Lovely too, I'm sure, but you might want to ask your guide if he recommends driving one direction on the road between Delphi and the port town of Itea on the Gulf of Corinth. I'm sure your guide knows the area quite well and can recommend the best routes, however.
For enjoying Delphi itself, I think I would have liked to be more recently familiar with some of the famous prophecies of antiquity. It would have been nice to sit in front of the Temple of Apollo (you can not go inside) and picture the specific people who made the pilgrimage to consult the oracle and think about the consequences of their actions. A little reading ahead of time might pay great atmospheric dividends.
Stoa Athanaton is not in Psiri, but it is quite near. However, it is not a place that can be experienced by just dropping in. At least on the night we were there (which was admittedly a Saturday night during Carnival) reservations were essential.
If you are going to Delphi on a day trip from Athens, you probably will not be driving the same route up or down Mount Parnassus that we took. That was a very beautiful drive, and I don't know what the drive is like approaching from the other direction. Lovely too, I'm sure, but you might want to ask your guide if he recommends driving one direction on the road between Delphi and the port town of Itea on the Gulf of Corinth. I'm sure your guide knows the area quite well and can recommend the best routes, however.
For enjoying Delphi itself, I think I would have liked to be more recently familiar with some of the famous prophecies of antiquity. It would have been nice to sit in front of the Temple of Apollo (you can not go inside) and picture the specific people who made the pilgrimage to consult the oracle and think about the consequences of their actions. A little reading ahead of time might pay great atmospheric dividends.
Mar 25th, 2005, 10:45 AM
#40
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Nikki, I was glad to see that you went to the Temple of Aphaia. Somehow, that temple gave me more of the feeling of a civilization "gone with the wind" than any other site we visited in Greece. It is so beautiful.
A long time ago, a tour guide told me not to try to tell people my feelings about a place that particularly spoke to me, saying that it was just for me and indescribable to others. I have found that to be true, but on the other hand it's hard not to try!
A long time ago, a tour guide told me not to try to tell people my feelings about a place that particularly spoke to me, saying that it was just for me and indescribable to others. I have found that to be true, but on the other hand it's hard not to try!
