It's still possible to eat fresh fish at reasonable prices in Greece, but you have to know what to look for. Mackerel and sardines (the large ones) are inexpensive, as is octopus. Mullet, snapper, etc will be more expensive. One of my favorite restaurants on Antiparos, Yorgis Taverna, does a fish soup that is sublime. :-D

Always ask for fresh fish to be weighed, and they will tell you the price for the meal. Most restaurants will either have a display cabinet up front or allow you to go back into the kitchen to select your fish. :-)

"we weren't able to get an answer from the Oracle about whether my son would ever get an iPhone"

√So cute. I really enjoyed your report and hope not too many people find Kythira!

We did have several whole fish, which we selected on a tour of the kitchens. We did not, however, ask for them to be priced. I dare say, if we had, we never would have ordered them! And we were always quite surprised by the bill.

On our last night on Kythira, for example, we treated our friends and a big group of others to dinner, and we ordered a big fish (2 kilos) for the table. It was delicious, but on the ferry back to Athens, my husband confessed that it had cost (gulp!) more than 100 euros!! And we were not in a fancy restaurant at all, just a seaside taverna.

Oh well, it was worth it to treat our friends to the beautiful dinner. But I couldn't help but think that if we had been on Sicily, we would have paid half the price (or less!) for that fish, even in a nice restaurant. Or we could have eaten five whole goats. So yes, if you are smart, you should ask the price. We were not so smart. And also, we just wanted the fish.

Did I mention that we drank a lot of rose wine on our trip? :)

it's a Greek habit to ask for the price per kilo before you order.....
The per kilo price is always mentioned in the menu ( they are obliged as per law)
Prices of course differ, but 50 euro per kilo for a good fish is average price...
I was shocked in Zoumberi, nest to Nea makri, and 30 km away from Athens , when i ordered fish sitting by the sea, it was a very nice taverna specialized in fish....i didn't look for the price, ordered fried Red mullet... and had to pay a price which was 89 euro per kilo....... and that was back in 2002... that's my personal record i think...haven't seen a higher price eversince

Glad you had such a wonderful time in such a wonderful country, without whose culture, there simply would be no Europe as we know it, or no America.

My own view of the reluctance of Greeks to pay taxes during a recession is that is totally understandable when they are told that the money will be used to pay off billionaire financial gamesters rather than invest in Greece and its needs. I'm surprised Americans don't protest more vigorously when it happens to them. The world's cleverest financiers have taken the stance that they shouldn't face risks or consequences when their artifically-created bubbles burst, and that instead, governments should tax everyday working people to make up their losses. Nice work if you can get it, but the Greeks are doing us all a favor by blowing the whistle on the scams.

zeppole, you're misinformed.

The Greek government borrowed staggering amounts (hundreds of billions of euros) and then concealed it, ie "cooked the books". It's called "living beyond your means".

The gov't used that borrowed money to pay lavish benefits to public sector workers and create a ridiculously bloated beauracracy (over 25% of all workers are employed directly by Gov't!).

The government's debt is something like 150% of GDP (the total sum of all goods and services produced), it will be virtually impossible to pay off.

Add to that mess, that tax evasion has always been a highly honed skill in Greece, and no wonder the Gov't is for all practical purposes, bankrupt.

Thought this James Surowiecki piece in the New Yorker was a worthwhile read:

http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financ...alk_surowiecki

Txtree,

We are planning a trip to Greece and Turkey next May/June. Although I understand it would be wonderful to spend two weeks alone on the Greek mainland or just on Crete - time just wont allow it. People are trying to discourage me from Crete as we will only have 4 or 5 days but I really want to see Crete. You spent 5 days there - do you think that is at least sufficient to see the highlights and still enjoy ourselves? Thank you!

Crete is a huge island, distance from west to east is 350 km..
You certainly won't have much time to explore the whole island, but you could visit at least some important places...

Try to combine Heraklion which is in the middle of the island ( and not worthseing with the exception of the Archeological Museum, that is closed atm for renovation with only a selection of the most important items being accessible and the site of Knossos).
What is very beautiful is the west of the island with beautiful venetian cities such as Rethymno ( 78 km west of HER) and Chania ( 140 km west of HER).
Depending on where you will go after Crete, you might have to return back to Heraklion..
In order to better explore the island a rental car would be
recommendable...
If you dont want to drive, the connection between there cities with the local busses is excelent.

Five days made me long for more, but I think if you accept that you can't do it all, you can have a wonderful time. I agree with Clausar that the western side of the island is particularly beautiful. You will be completely charmed by Chania. I met a couple on my trip who had visited several islands and added five days in Chania at the end even though their travel agent told them they were nuts. They kept telling me how glad they were that they did - it was their favorite place.

Are you flying or ferrying?

Well - my plan now is to fly straight to Crete (I actually changed my flight to Europe to go into Brussels as there are flights direct to Crete). 6 nights/5days in Crete. 2 nights in Santorini, fly to Athens for two nights and then direct to Izmir to start the Turkey leg. We would rent a car in Crete and concentrate our travel around Herk/Chania not to waste time driving around.

Oh and fast ferry from Crete to Santorini and then fly from Santorini to Athens.

Plans could easily change in a year - but now that I know there is a direct flight from Athens to Izmir, I feel like I have more options.

That sounds workable. And Santorini is so different (and also very special), I think it's a great idea to stop there on your way back to Athens. You are going at the right time of year too. We had wonderful weather in June (highs in the upper 80s), but just a few weeks later, it was way up in the 90s and (from what I've heard from friends) almost unbearable.

Love your trip report!

not_enuf, which airline flies from Athens to Izmir? Actually we'd like to do the reverse, fly Izmir to Athens.

Sorry Mimar - didnt see this until now.

Pegasus for one - although I dont think they are every day.

Thanks for an inspiring trip report!