Once again our travels have had a”Minties” moment with the sighting of a little slippery viper In Corinth near one of the first churches constructed in Christendom. After relaxing at Hotel Tony with a couple of Sav Blancs we headed off into the night in search of a cheap meal.
We found a place which was more of a hole in the wall in the Plaka district where restaurants abound in numbers. They won us over with a 9.9 Euro meal deal which consisted of bread, Greek salad, main meal and a glass of wine. The food was great and in such quantity that I could have gotten by on just the salad. It must have been a good restaurant and battered fish it's specialty as a number of customers came just for the fish as it received a good review in “the book”.
Alice's verdict was that it was a light and crispy batter, well cooked but a little to bony for her taste. We thought the Italian at the next table may not had eaten for a week judging on the way he devoured his and his mother's fish.
Saturday 18th September – Delphi
Up early once again for a full day trip (99 Euro) to Delphi and the Sanctuary of Apollo.
The drive up into Central Greece took us along another great highway with magnificent vistas. As we traveled through Livadia there were huge fields of cotton and the occasional goat herder with a shepherds crook tending his flock.
On the slopes of Mt Parnassos we passes through the village of Arahova. I marveled at how our driver manouvered our large coach through the narrow streets. The village with great views over the valley acts as an alpine retreat during the ski season. Not much chance of skiing today as the temperature is again in the 30's.
Ancient Delphi is built on the slopes of mt Parnassos, overlooking the Gulf of Corinth and extends into a valley of Cypress and Olive trees. It is a stunning setting with inspiring ruins. Walking up the Sacred Way you pass a number of treasuries before arriving at the foundations of the Doric Temple of Apollo. Above the temple is a well preserved 4th century BC theatre which was restored by the Pergamenon kings in the 1st century BC.
Ticket prices would have been extensive as the view from the top row is unbeatable. The path continues upwards to the stadium which is supposed to be the best preserved in Greece. They say the stadium could seat about 7000 spectators.
The Delphi Museum is definitely worth a visit. The exhibits include the frieze from Siphnian treasury, Sphinx of the Naxians and the tall Acanthus Column of Dancers with three women dancing around its top. The last exhibit is the celebrated life size Bronze Charioteer which commemorates a victory in the Pythian Games of 478 BC.
Back in Athens we settle up our account with Tony himself. He is a great host and takes pride in looking after his guests. At 60 Euro a night this place is bargain. Only a ten minute walk to the Acropolis and a swag of good restaurants. A couple of more nights would not have gone astray. One thing I really enjoyed was the sweet Tomatoes. I can imagine an aged Greek farmer named Stavros watching over his garden to make sure the birds do not get at this delicious fruit.
Sunday 19th September – Andros
Up at 5.00am well before the sun rises to catch a taxi to the port of Rafina where we will board a Blue Star ferry to the Cyclades island of Andros.
Given my past experience with taxi drivers I was fearful that the taxi fare would blow out to 100 Euro. I was pleasantly surprised by the 45 Euro fare. Safely stowed away in A class, the super ferry promptly departed the quay on time at 8.05am and sailed off into the Aegean Sea.
Just after 10.00 we docked at the port of Gavrio and disembarked with a few other passengers.
In no time flat we were off in yet another taxi (must be the most I have ever spent on taxis in one day) for the small town of Batsi. I thought the driver must have been related to Mark Webber as he wasted no time in getting us to our destination of Villa Alexandros.
For 35 Euro per night we have a top floor apartment (3 floors) with the most incredible views. We have access to a small sandy beach with crystal clear water. The township is located on the inner curve of a handsome bay. A sandy beach on the north side merges eventually with a harbour-side promenade backed by a colorful swath of cafes, tavernas and shops. While we were waiting for our room to be made up we ventured into town for some happy hour supplies and a feed at the Koala Taverna.
The apartment owner informed us that this was the warmest September in the last 10 years. Oh the luck of the Gould's, well I guess we may as well head down to our beach which we are sharing with about 10 other pilgrims.
While I was swimming, did I mention the water was warm, I saw an octopus and a fish with wings. It is now happy hour and Alice has the cheese, crackers ice cold Amstel beer and wine ready. The Greek naval ship which is anchored off the headland is also having a happy hour as they are pumping out plenty of music to serenade us.
We are becoming a little like the Greeks because we are not venturing out for dinner until after 8.00pm. Maybe it's because the sun does not go down until then.
Anyway it is a beautiful night with the moon beams reflecting off the water. We chose a restaurant called the “Dolphin” because it had great views of the harbour or was it the free carafe of wine on offer.
I had a sense of deja vu whilst waiting for dinner as there were a couple of gentleman breakfasters lookalikes seated nearby. They definitely had all the characteristics of Needles and Peter Kunde.
Dinner tonight was spaghetti with king prawns, stuffed calamari and a bowl of olives washed down with cold beer and wine. Delicious! When we left the Needles lookalike presented us with a caricature of us that he had whipped up.
Monday 20th September – Another Day In Paradise
How pleasant it is to wake up and see Dolphins at play from your apartment window.
We have about 240 degree views from the balcony and window of our little studio apartment.
After a leisurely breakfast Alice wanted to explore some of the town. I was content to just sit and read but I obeyed and followed faithfully downtown. Nothing to report except that it is hard doing nothing. Lunch, followed by a nanna nap and a relaxing swim is the order for the remainder of the day. Oh! Can't forget happy hour.
The wind has picked up this afternoon which has really cooled things down. We are sitting out on our patio at 6.30 in the evening when we here a car with a loud speaker spruking something in Greek. It reminds me of a scene from the great Blues Brothers movie when Dan Akroyd is trying to drum up business for their show - “Tonight only, the fabulous Blues Brothers rhythm and blues band from Chicago, Illinois.......” but when the ute comes around the corner it turns out that he is selling fresh potatoes.
On our way to dinner we came across a grey nomad convention.
In the local car park there were at least twenty camper vans set up for the night. It reminded me of one of Tony Guarino's caravan club rallys.
Dinner tonight will be at the Stamatis Taverna which is recommended by the Lonely Planet. It turned out to be a great choice as it was the best meal so far on our travels. I had “exohiko” which was baked lamb with sauteed onions, green capsicum and cheese all wrapped in filo pastry accompanied with rice, baked potato and a carafe of local red wine. Alice had a more conventional meal of lamb chops.
Tuesday 21st September – The Cyclades Wind
The wind has not abated overnight and the sea is laced with whitecaps. Our little beach is in the direct path of the wind so a day of lounging on the sand is out of the question. It is still okay for swimming but a little choppy. It will be a good excuse to surf the net and arrange some accommodation for Mykonos.
Wednesday 22nd September – Mykonos
We decided to stay in last night and save a few Euro by eating the remainder of our supplies. Up with the sparrows this morning as we have to catch the Super Ferry to our next port of call. A cruise ship has docked in the bay which meant that the local taxis will be busy and that we will have to transfer to the main port of Garvio a little earlier.
After settling up our account of 105 Euro we bid farewell to our host Lorainne who has been most helpful during our stay. We had a great room with everything that we required to make us comfortable. I would give this a rating of 9.5 and would have no hesitation in returning.
Down in Garvio we watched a couple of ferries arriving with the next boat load of tourists and locals ready to sample the pleasures of Andros. The precision in which the load and unload vehicles and passengers is tremendous. Everything is completed in 15 minutes.
On our arrival in Mykonos we could not spot our hotel pickup so we caught yet another taxi to our destination. We are staying at the Paradise View which is approximately 300 metres from the famous Paradise Beach party scene.
Our room which is costing 190 Euro for 3 nights overlooks the pool with views down the valley to the beach. The room is very modern and near new. The owner George who just missed us at the port is a wealth of information and takes pride in his establishment. Once again the hospitality of the
Greeks has been second to none.After settling in we took a stroll down the hill for some supplies from the mini mart and a gander of the beach.
Plenty happening at this spot as young and old beach goers take advantage of the sun without the wind blowing them away. Beach chairs under an umbrella go for 3 Euro which is probably worth it as it guarantees your spot at Paradise. The bar area is huge with a couple of resorts such as the Paradiso and the Tropicana vying for the tourist dollar.
Tonight we head for Mykonos town on the local bus that operates on a half hour frequency and costs 1.40 Euro for a 15 minute journey. Cheaper than a one zone Brisbane fare.
The landscape around the area is quite barren and rocky. One thing I did admire was the workmanship that goes into constructing the dry stone fences.
Headed off for a look at the famous windmills which stand on the headland overlooking little Venice. The sun was obscured by clouds so we could not enjoy the sunset. We will try again tomorrow.
Due to the wind the bay around little Venice was close to being surf. The waves were smashing up against the buildings which are perched right on the waters edge.
Alice decided that we needed to look at some of the shopping that is available so we were soon traveling through a maze of alleys that are littered with all the big name fashion brands, restaurants and the odd church.
After a couple of hours wandering through this labyrinth we needed some sustenance and settled for a restaurant offering a seafood meal deal for two at 28 Euro.
At 9.00 pm the restaurant was still filling up and the alleyways crowded with people. If this is low season then I would absolutely hate high season. All the people may be due to a large cruise boat being in port for the night.
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