Greece

Introduction:

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more (Henry V, Act III, Scene I).

Six months of travel, twenty countries: United Kingdom, France, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Spain, and Portugal.

Some elements of the trip appear in “The Daily” including a mishmash of topics. Photo gallery has trip images, captions available when viewed in slide show mode.

TUE 25 April: wake up at sunrise, bright, sunny morning. Why am I doing this. Three trains from Connecticut to Newark airport, United Airlines non-stop flight to London, departs before sunset, arrives without incident; take the underground into Central London. Five-hour time zone change, takes my body a few days to adjust.

Visit British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum. Each venue is free to the public, but need to reserve tickets in advance on-line. Museums were crowded, both frustrating and claustrophobic. British Museum, focused on the Japanese collection. National Gallery, singled out a few paintings, including van Gogh’s Sunflowers. Glorious weather on Saturday, sunshine, 65-degrees, Londoners out in force, enjoyed Portobello street market.

SUN 30 April: wake up early, as hostel roommates return to the room. London Underground to St Pancras train station, Eurostar to Paris. St. Pancras has vaulted atrium roof of steel and glass. Eurostar cruises smoothly through the French countryside at 300 km/h (185 mph); pass bright yellow fields of rapeseed, ready to be harvested and converted to canola oil. Drop off backpack at hostel, visit Montmartre and Sacré Cœur Basilica; every turn feels like the movie set of Amelie.

Walking tour of Paris, more than 10-miles, interrupted briefly by hail storm; Bastille Monument, banks of the River Seine, 800-year old Notre Dame cathedral (severely damaged by fire in 2019, with the intention of re-opening in 2024), Tuileries Garden, Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe, Museum of Modern Art, and Eiffel Tower, which was more stunning as it played “hide and seek” between city blocks.

WED 03 May: wake up early, light rail to Gare de Lyon, and high-speed train onward to Milan, pre-dawn departure. Eight-hour trip, with stops in Lyon France and Turin Italy. Arrive in Milan, subway to local hostel. Temperate, t-shirt weather for the first time.

Visit Milan Cathedral (Duomo di Milano), Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a four-story, double-glass vaulted shopping arcade, and Brera Botanical Garden.

FRI 05 May: wake up early, subway not in service, not confident about taking local bus to Milano Centrale. Allow extra time in case I need to walk to train station, or pay for overpriced Uber Black. Bus works out fine, a few other travelers en route to the train station, and some festive revelers. High-speed train, Milan to Bari Italy, with stops in Bologna, Florence, and Rome. Bucolic ride through the country-side, but arrive fatigued after eight hours on the train.

SAT 06 May: visit Bari old town (Bari Vecchia), warren of narrow alleys, stacked apartment houses adorned with festive window boxes, and laundry flittering overhead like an overhead sail. It’s a tiring day – endurance travel – hauling around backpack for 7-miles before checking in for the overnight ferry. On a day like this, it’s all too easy for my mind to become mired in a cesspool of dark thoughts. Ferry announcements in five languages (English, French, German, Greek, Italian); wear earplugs to reduce the noise, and drift off to sleep. Ferry departs at 8pm, cross the Adriatic Sea, arrive in Igoumenitsa Greece at 6am, and Patras at 1pm. Depart the ferry terminal, Patras resembles a ghost town, it’s Sunday, and most businesses are closed; question why I didn’t continue onwards to Athens. Check into AirBnB, it’s clean and quiet, and listen to the birds chirp in the background; with a private room, sit down to meditate.

AirBnB host serves bread with marmalade made from citrus trees in the garden. Didn’t get dinner the night before, so breakfast was a welcome treat. Head into town and find the bus station, sometimes, Google maps isn’t accurate. Purchased bus ticket on-line, and show ticket to the attendant. She smiles back at me, and I can’t tell if she’s letting me know that the ticket is in good order, or, if she is simply being polite. I guess that I will find out tomorrow. Grocery shopping is an exercise in patience – it is literally all Greek to me – don’t know if I’m buying yogurt, cheese, or butter, will likely be surprised when I return to the AirBnB.

TUE 09 May: two-mile walk to bus station; it’s all pretty civil, and three-hour ride on express bus from Patras to Athens. Bus terminal is outside Athens, little benefit by taking subway, so walk two miles and drop off backpack at hostel. Scattered rain drops, sky can’t decide if it wants to rain.

Hostel is gracious to serve breakfast; coffee, muesli, and Greek yogurt so thick that it won’t fall off the spoon, could likely use it for sheetrock spackle. Visit the city’s main attraction, Acropolis and Parthenon. Save time by purchasing ticket on-line in advance. The area is crowded, but not unreasonable.

SAT 13 May: travel days feel like a complete crap shoot, really have no idea what is going to happen. It’s a pleasant surprise when things go well, but, it could just as easily turn into a dumpster fire. Wake up early in the morning, revelers are still reveling. Subway not operating this early in the morning, take X95 airport express bus. Sit in the very back of the accordion bus, it feels like I’m sitting a city block behind the driver. Arrive at the airport, and don’t see any signage for Cyprus Airways, and for a few minutes, wonder if I’m at the wrong airport. Airport security takes issue with my shave brush, blade-less razor, and shave soap, as if these items pose a threat to the aircraft or cabin crew.

Arrive in Larnaca Cyprus, drop off backpack at hostel, and head into town to pick-up reservation for Yamaha 250cc motorcycle. I’m told that the motorcycle was damaged the previous day, and the only motorcycles on the lot are 650cc. This is a larger motorcycle than I wish to drive, and cancel the reservation; was going to visit Limassol and Paphos. I’m fatigued by the end of the day, even though nothing went wrong. Traveling often feels like a puzzle, may only play one piece at a time, as much as I want to solve the entire puzzle at once.

Wake up before sunrise, beach run before the sun becomes too intense. Afterwards, take bus from Larnaca to Nicosia (Lefkosia in Turkish), capital of Cyprus, and the last divided capital city in the world. Pass through United Nations buffer zone, demarked with concertina wire, passport is scanned by police on each side of the border. Walk past Ledra Palace Hotel, it’s sandstone façade marred by bullet holes, and overwhelmed by the smell from the Eucalyptus trees. Enter the Turkish controlled region, my intention is to bear witness, but it’s difficult to not feel like a voyeur.

WED 17 May: return flight from Cyprus to Athens, X95 bus from airport to city center.

THU 18 May: take subway to Athens train station, train departs on time – mostly tourists – and arrives five hours later at Kalambaka. It’s not a high-speed train, average 45-50 mph, scenic ride, but sometimes depressing, as the train stops at derelict and decrepit train stations. Wonder if I’m going to end up in an isolated destination. Train passes Mount Giona, peaks covered in snow at 8,200 feet.

Early start to the day, hike 15-kilometers, to explore Meteora monasteries. Trails offer a break from tour buses and crowds; steep but enjoyable, and the songbirds are infinitely happy. It rained overnight; low clouds give way to sunshine as the morning unfolds. Cliffs are fragile sandstone and composite rock, YouTube drone footage provides dramatic perspective.

There is a public track nearby, composite surface, and a set of pull-up bars. With each lap, perform a set of running drills, and with each lap, pull out a set of pull-ups, eventually reaching my age, which is less easy as I become older.

SUN 21 May: travel from Kalambaka to Thessaloniki. Show my bus ticket at the station, ticket agent starts yelling. Not sure if there is something wrong with the ticket, or, if he is having a bad day. Bus departs late, but, better than getting stuck in this hole of a bus station. Bus drives 30-minutes south, and change buses at Trikala. Trikala is a large bus station, with an overhead steel roof; it’s difficult to find a safe place to stand with pigeons roosting overhead. Should have departed on Saturday, because there was nothing else to do in Kalambaka, and most of the stores will be closed in Thessaloniki on Sunday. I’m not feeling the slightest bit intrepid, weather is cool and damp, and the sky can’t decide if it wants to rain. Sit in the front of the bus, watch the bus driver play with his iPhone more frequently than a teenager. Heading north, the scenery is unremarkable.

Bus arrives on the outskirts of the city, near the gantry cranes that unload cargo ships. Bus spits me out in another stinking part of a city, there is no sidewalk, likely, most people drive or take taxi. It’s not raining, cold, or dark, so walk 2.5 miles to the hostel. Walking into the city center, the architecture is unremarkable, as if, the city was competing with Russia to design and build the most drab buildings possible. Pass the train station en route, so no need to make separate reconnaissance trip. While the Greek economy is improving, Greece comes across as backwards at times, as if, it’s the red-headed step child of the European Union. Check into the hostel as the sky opens up and begins to rain.

Next day, explore the city, including street markets, and ancient ruins. Find a barber on a narrow alley, and for 5 euros, head shaved bald – like Lex Luthor bald – and leave the shop with my scalp as smooth as my face. Don’t mind paying for a haircut, but want to get my money’s worth, and have the haircut last as long as possible. I have a small lesion on my left temple, clearly visible without hair. When I flew to London, I thought that I hit my head when I was working outdoors in Connecticut. Scheduled an appointment with the dermatologist for November 2nd, after I return to the United States, potentially the fourth MOHS procedure on left side of my face.

Next morning is a quiet day, wake up 5am without my alarm, and after a cup of coffee, morning run along waterfront park, and watch the cargo ships in the harbor. It’s a hard surface, but, it’s a safe place to run, without risk of being hit by a car, or falling into a pothole. I trade endorphins for bile, a short period of time to feel okay. Visit the nearby Atatürk Museum, adjacent to the Turkish Consulate, where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, was born in 1881.

WED 24 May: wake up early, drink coffee in sixth floor hostel common room, stare out a wall of 10×10 foot plate glass windows onto the park below. Glow from the sodium lights paints the tree tops in dark shades. Watch taxi and city bus drive down the boulevard, a few pedestrians, and lazy, neon signs in the closed shop windows.

Take 7am train from Thessaloniki to Athens, it’s a new train, few passengers, traveling 300-miles at 65mph. Train passes decrepit train stations, and the hulks of rusted rail cars. February 28th, on this same route, there was a collision between northbound passenger train and southbound freight train, that killed 57 people. While much of the route is dual track, Greece still relies on manual, rather than automatic track controls, unlike the rest of the European Union. When I check out of the hostel, the receptionist tells me that he refuses to take the train to visit Athens.

THU 25 May: wake up early, as I prepare to depart, $200 is missing from backpack, first time that I lost currency or any possessions in fifteen years of travel. I am particular how I pack, everything has its place, and I am particular about securing my few belongings. Displeased and disappointed. “Sunk cost” is included below in the other category. Will elaborate in a separate post, The Daily, Saturday 10 June.

Take subway to Pireaus terminal, for ferry from Athens to Mykonos. Ferry departs 7am and arrives six hours later. There is no sidewalk for the 1.5-mile walk to the hostel. Walk along the edge of the narrow street, cars pass by and honk the horn. Arrive at the hostel, which was expensive, but limited affordable lodging on the island. There is no common area, no kitchen, and no drinking water. Water on most of the islands has high mineral content, making the water unpalatable. Hostel is filled not with tourists, but young people, aged 25-30, who want to drink themselves into oblivion. Overwhelming urge to leave the island immediately.

Can see why Mykonos is a cruise ship destination, not much to do beyond a few hours, coffee, gelato, souvenir shops, take a few pictures. The challenge with a pure-tourist destination, is that there is little interaction with locals, and the experience is a bit saccharine. I go running, five-mile figure eight loop, that allows me to get away from the tourist areas. The island is rocky, with few, if any, trees. Throughout history, the island has served as a port of trade. Energy used to be produced by diesel generator, but is now provided by underwater cable to the mainland. I wonder if trash is removed via ferry, but understand that there is a large dump on the island. Gasoline costs $8 USD per gallon.

SUN 28 May: wake up early, weather is windy, 20-mph sustained winds, and white caps on the sea. Track the in-bound ferry from Athens on-line, and pleased to see that it’s on-time. Ferry arrives in Mykonos, and completes the boarding process in ten minutes. High-speed ferry, traveling almost 50-mph, and arrives in Santorini in two hours. Near the ferry port, there is a large, orange buoy in the water; marks the underwater location where the MS Sea Diamond struck the nearby caldera and sank in April 2007. Take shuttle bus from the port to the city center, and check into the hostel, and later, explore the area during sunset.

Wake early, without alarm, and explore the area at sunrise. Reprieve from the crowds, as I watch three cruise ships enter the harbor. Hike Karavolades Stairs, 580-stairs to reach the old port, it’s a good workout. As I climb back to the top, donkeys head down to the harbor to greet cruise ship passengers who don’t want to walk, or, who don’t want to take the cable car. Donkeys wear tinkling bells, as if celebrating the winter holidays. Many of the steps are covered in manure, and the smell of urine is overpowering; reminds me of hiking Bright Angel Trail at Grand Canyon.

Wake at sunrise, 8-mile loop run to see one of the island’s calderas. Pass under fragrant Eucalyptus trees, and groves of low-growing grape vines, with little rain, one of the few items that grows in the volcanic soil. As I return to town, run along the east side of the island – it’s industrial and gritty – suppose that every paradise has its dark side. Similar to Mykonos, steep hill climbs that never end, force me to walk. After returning to the hostel, stretch outdoors before cold shower to clean up.

WED 31 May: afternoon ferry, Santorini to Heraklion Crete, will elaborate next month.

Travel cost:

Get out the credit card; feels like I spend money every day. I will only die once, even if it feels like I die every day. Track six-month cumulative costs, 37-days travel to date.

Passport issued October 2022, 50-page book. First seven pages are administrivia; 43-pages available for border crossing; 4-pages used, 39-pages remain.

Conclusion:

Will enjoy a few days in Crete, before onward ferry to Rhodes, and subsequent ferry to Marmaris Turkey (TUE 06 June).

One month down, five months to go. If I travel long enough, do I risk becoming numb and mute, and ignore the world’s suffering. Do I book an onward ticket to Hong Kong for December, before I can change my mind. This journey feels challenging, face my own demons each day, and often times, the demons win. I see you Mara.

Do I return from this trip married or with a girlfriend. Do I return with a tattoo. Do I return with a bald head, or shaggy head of hair. Do I return early, or, not return at all.
I don’t know, and not knowing is most intimate.

June 1, 2023

Travel

Cyprus, Greece, Meteora, Mykonos, Santorini

Greece

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