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Europe, England & Greece 2023Europe, England & Greece 2023
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Our winter getaway this year will take us to The Netherlands for a cruise around Norway. Next stop will be a few weeks in France before we cross The Channel to visit friends in England. The final stage of our holiday is to explore Greece. Read more
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  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 53

    Its all Greek to me

    August 6, 2023 in Qatar ⋅ ☀️ 40 °C

    Now for the last leg of our trip from Athens to Doha then on to Tullamarine Melbourne. Flight time of the last leg is 13 hours and 25 minutes. We will arrive at approximately midnight and catch a cab home.

    The stopover in Doha is just long enough for us to catch a shower and have a nightcap.

    Now for my reflections on Greece. On my first visit to Athens we weren't that impressed. I thought it was a dirty city and everything we did they wanted cash. We couldn’t have been more wrong with that impression.

    Greece under the EU is thriving, but you still get asked for cash!

    Our tour taught us heaps about how Greece shaped much of the modern world not just the Olympics. It also showed us how Greece is literally the center of the world because they are surrounded by Europe, Middle East and Africa. These regions were historically always attacking and laying claim to Greece, but the saddest occupation were the Persian Ottomans.

    For 400 years the Greeks were held captive in their own country, not allowed to do anything but farm and be slaves to the Persians. Their children weren’t even allowed to be educated. By the time they rebelled, took back their country the damage was done. They completely missed the Industrial Revolution and then of course they were dragged into WW2. Crete was a vital part of the supply line to Britain.

    With no rehabilitation on offer from the Allies post war, they were left with an overpopulated bankrupt county. So many left for new countries and thank goodness Melbourne was one of them. It all makes more sense now.

    Today in Greece there is big money to be made in tourism and hospitality. The food is fabulous except the Greek salads come hidden under a slab of fetta. We found Crete much more affordable than the hotspots of Santorini and Mykonos.

    Driving was fun but Greeks ignore the rules. Indicators are optional as are the speed limits. Overtaking is hazardous because they pass when they feel like it.

    I can’t image what Greece would have become if it hadn’t been occupied all those years. They were on track as one of the most clever and innovative countries in the world.

    We had a great trip and have added two new countries to our list as well as catching up with friends.

    The blogs are fun to write and will become our permanent memory of our trip in 2023.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 52

    Koutsounari to Heraklion

    August 5, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    We never sleep well when we have an early alarm set and sure enough we were both up and about before the alarms went off.

    The drive back to the airport is just under two hours and there is hardly a car on the road at 7am.

    The water is a gorgeous blue this morning and very calm. The scenery on the drive is mixture of rugged one minute, then there will pop up a village with inviting beaches.

    The hire car company asked us to ring in when we were 20 minutes out. This coincided nicely with filling the tank. We didn’t even use half a tank which is just as well because petrol is double what the price is back home.

    The airport is a zoo. Traffic jams made it difficult to find our man. He saw us first and waved us to park near him. He looked at the fuel gauge, smiled and said thank you. That was the full extent of the return process. Our little Fiat 1200 did a good job.

    Heraklion airport is a nightmare. Way too small for the holiday makers traffic. The great news is our bags were underweight and were able to be checked through to Melbourne.

    Sharon wanted a spanakopita so I queued up for some food and that was breakie. On to Athens.

    Our time between flights in Athens is 7 hours. Yuck. Thank goodness for the airline lounge. I listened to the footy while Shad read her kindle.

    Eventually boarding time arrived and we have 4.5 hours to Doha.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 51

    Last day at the resort

    August 4, 2023 in Greece ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    First thing today, we did our web site check in with Aegean Airline. It is starting to feel like the end of our holiday is coming. Our thoughts are drifting to Melbourne next week.

    Our plan today is to soak up some more Greek sun at Long Beach. We both agreed this was the best beach of the week so that is where we will chill out this afternoon.

    We have probably had more sun than we needed now but we want to get home with some sign of a tan.

    The beach was a bit windy but we stayed until 4pm and had a treat pina colada before we packed up.

    Bags are now sorted and the sun has set. We tried yet another taverna at the bottom of the hill. The salad was one of the best we have had on the trip. I ordered pastitsio and Sharon had lamb chops. It was yet another great feed that cost very little.

    Time for some cards before lights out and I lost AGAIN!    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    1
    Day 50

    Analipsis

    August 3, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    We have been on the go seven weeks today and are due to get home late Sunday night.

    The thinking is to still not do much and make the most of this sleepy town on Crete.

    We saw a bakery up the road that looked newish and I am hanging out for a decent coffee. It was a bakery disguised as a meeting place for elderly men. They are so loud as they each try to make their point about whatever it is they are discussing. We sat and had breakie but the smoking was so bad we couldn’t wait to get out.

    We drove up the coast in search of a new beach and last minute shopping. I discovered a new way of supporting my wife when she shopped. I parked kerbside at the top of the hill and just rolled down beside her as she went shop to shop! The more remote you get on Crete the less anyone cares about parking and rules.

    Analipsis is a lovely little cove with actual sand. We found a sun lounge and brolly that was a perfect spot for the afternoon. The taverna behind us informed us the lounges are free as long as you buy a few things from them. I dutifully ordered some water bottles.

    This is a really popular family destination with shallow water, so ideal for kiddies. It was a great afternoon and by 5pm we packed up, paid our bill and had a quick 20 minute drive home.

    At 8pm we went to a pizza restaurant and guess what! We weren’t the first guests. We were greeted by the owners who gave us a piece of paper on a peg. Seems that was the specials but we couldn’t read it. Our table was on the tiled veranda roadside and we managed to order pizza and a schnitzel for Sharon. I felt a bug run across my foot then Sharon yelped. From that point she sat with her feet on the next chair despite the owner begging her to come inside further to higher ground.

    This all added to the character of the evening.

    We retired back to our base and I lost at cards AGAIN……    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    1
    Day 49

    Long Beach & BBQ Day

    August 2, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    The resort is well known for its weekly BBQ. We have booked in tonight at 6:30pm.

    Stunning day in Koutsounari. The jet skis, boats and yachts are all out on a very calm Mediterranean Sea. This is in stark contrast to the past few days of gale force winds.

    The breakfast at the resort is so much food all brought to the table so all you have to get up for is juice and hot beverages.

    Today the table was stacked with cheese toasties, cheese puffs, laminington style cake, peanuts biscuits, yoghurt, fried egg, omelette, cherry jelly cup, Nutella crepe finished off with watermelon and orange fruit plate. Did I miss anything? What a mountain of food. Too much gets wasted unfortunately.

    Our perfect beach day has arrived and it is only a short drive down the hill. Greeks really do beach time well. There are wooden plank pathways to the water from the road and they lay it between sun lounges with good size umbrellas. We paid the 2 euros each for the sun lounges wondering why Mykonos get away with >80 euros.

    The attendant said he would be at our beck and call if we needed food or refreshments.

    The water is crystal clear and gets deep quick. You have to wear your thongs to the waters edge because the black pebbles are hard on the feet but also it gets scorching hot. Today it mid 30s.

    A quick dip is required when you get hot otherwise just get back to you sun bed and back to your book. Very civilized.

    After a few hours we ordered a pina colada and a 🍺 which arrived in quick time for just 10 euros. We are living the dream right here on Long Beach.

    The bbq was well patronized and at 7pm were the first to participate- again. Unfortunately the cook overdid the meats but otherwise we had a good feed and enjoyed the sunset.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 48

    Day to catch up

    August 1, 2023 in Greece ⋅ 🌙 27 °C

    We are both feeling a bit ordinary today so we think it best to spend the day in our room and catch up on the little things.

    Our iPhones have so many photos it is time to download them to the laptop.
    This will take hours but it is fun to look at all the places we have been this holiday.

    The wind has subsided so we enjoyed the pool area without feeling like we were going to launch!

    Another local taverna that scored well is called Nikos. We decided we didn’t like always being the first customer of the evening so we drive there at 8pm to a totally empty restaurant- again.

    We shared the fried zucchini which is really popular here and then we both ordered pastitsio which is made fresh each day. The Greek salad was huge for just the two of us. The host served complimentary cut up fruit. All washed down with a Mythos beer and Shad’s b&c.

    Still no other customers and we left at 9:30pm. Cost only 35 euros. So reasonable compared to Athens and the big islands.

    Before we went home we did a beach visit. There was a beautiful moonrise so we mucked around with funny pictures. There were still quite a few people down at the beach sitting in darkness playing in the shallows and picnicking on the sand (pebbles).

    Tomorrow is going to be an even better day.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 47

    Lerapetra

    July 31, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    We drove back to the main town of Lerapetra for brunch on the waterfront. Being Monday, we thought it would be a bit quieter. Not at all.

    It was very hectic with motorbikes everywhere making driving even more precarious. Parking around the waterfront was nearly impossible. We eventually found a spot outside a school.

    The restaurant we chose offered breakies but we got a strange look when we ordered the continental plate. We think they only wanted to do lunches now. Orange juice is almost always freshly squeezed on our entire trip. What we get at home feels ordinary.

    The brekkie arrives and it is too much food so we eat what we can before walking down the shopping precinct.

    We decided to head back to our resort as it was just too difficult to work out where you can swim and get a lounge at a reasonable price.

    The wind is not as bad as yesterday so by the pool is a bit more pleasant. We think the resort has had a power failure because the generator near the pool has kicked in and stinks of diesel fumes.

    Meanwhile we watched some new fridges get delivered and we wondered where they would go. Sure enough when we went back to our room, we were greeted by three staff installing a new fridge!

    We sat on our little balcony while the installers change over our fridge. That’s a first for us.

    We are eating in the room tonight. We bought a lasagna and salad which went down well. At 9pm we FaceTime our buddies in Canada. We need to plan to catch up with them next year.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 46

    Koutsounari

    July 30, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    The sea view is good, as we are up on the hillside in Koutsounari. The wind is really blowing this morning, so we just enjoyed a breaky and listened to the footy back home.

    The beaches here are nothing like what we are used to back home. They are fine pebbles and black sand. We tried to take a beach walk on Long Beach, but it was just too windy. The water is so beautiful with shades of blue.

    Took a drive up the coast but even the little Fiat was getting blown around, so we decided to take refuge by our pool.

    We saw a local family taverna called Rodis with great reviews, so we walked about 150 metres from our room and there it was. Not all that flash from the outside.

    Rodos is a traditional Greek, family-owned taverna since 1989. The name "Rodos" comes from Vasilis' (the owner) hometown who was born on the Greek island of Rhodes but relocated to Crete when he fell in love with his wife and restaurant's cook, Aristea.

    He greeted us at the door and gave us the choice of the restaurant for where to sit. We were the first customers, and it was 7pm. He then takes you into his tiny kitchen and shows you what is on offer. Just two mains and some appetizers.

    He is locally known for his home-made Greek cuisine specializing in traditional recipes. We were also given a wee drop of his home brew. He called it something and said, “like schnapps”. It was ok.

    The appetizers were spring rolls filled with feta & vegetables, zucchini fritters and 5 cheese biscuits. For main we tried both which were beef patties in tomato & capsicum mix plus rice. The other was chunky braised pork with wedges of potatoes. To finish off he served us a light creamy strawberry dessert.

    By the time we finished our substantial meal his taverna had plenty of customers. As there was no menu or wine list, we discussed what we thought it would cost and came up with💲 60+. Nope. He only charged $27.50 and that included a wine and a soft drink. Too cheap so I gave him more.

    It was fabulous experiencing traditional food this way.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    1
    Day 45

    Athens to Crete

    July 29, 2023 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Now we are on our own again. Feels a bit weird having been spoilt by Insight Vacations for the last two weeks.

    They give an airport transfer, so we were picked up at 10am by a nice man in a Mercedes.

    Athens in a Saturday morning is quiet. Greeks tend to be up and about more in the afternoon and evening.

    Air Agean will take us to Crete which is a short 50 minute flight into Heraklion airport. There we will pick up a hire car and drive 1.5 hours right down to the western end of Crete.

    I have been watching how the Greeks drive and I have come to the conclusion you just have to be aggressive but fair! This will be different to driving in France.

    The boarding process on this flight was one of the worst we have ever experienced. The airline staff had guests arguing aggressively with them about what we don’t know. Maybe it is just a Greek thing to be loud but when you add this to a rowdy group of Americans beside us it wasn’t that pleasant.

    The flight was short, and we found the booth to get the car. Turns out it wasn’t his booth at all just a meeting point. He helped with our bags, and we walked into the car pack to his Kombi van office complete with solar panels to power the printer. Very unusual.

    Our car is a Fiat. It is tiny but that is all we need. The drive out from Heraklion was easy and soon we are on a freeway in light traffic.

    The time share was about 90 minutes away and the only challenge on the road was to work out traffic overtaking you. I was only on the speed limit, but I think I was the only one! Even oncoming traffic drift into your lane so you have to move to your kerb. As expected, the Greeks are aggressive drivers in a hurry and always speeding.

    Crete Suites are frankly disappointing. It is an old-time share and a bit pokey. It will have to do. We unpacked and headed into Letapetra where we found a nice beachside cafe for a bite.

    Next a supermarket shop and we are stocked for a week.    Read more

  • Europe, England & Greece 2023
    Day 43

    Mykonos to Athens

    July 27, 2023 in Greece ⋅ 🌙 27 °C

    Travels days are always a bit disjointed and today is no different.

    Bags out at 11am bus leaves at 1pm ferry at 2pm etc etc etc. By tonight we will be back in Athens at the same hotel we have already stayed at twice on our itinerary.

    Our ferry will be a better quality today. Our seating is first class. The people movements between the islands is something you have to see to believe.

    There are a heap of Brits here but really the Greek islands are popular for just about anyone except maybe the Greeks.

    The seating was so much better on our ferry and we managed to even nap a bit. Getting off was the usual stampede with the masses but we are veterans at this now.

    The coach to our hotel was in traffic and Erin took the mic and went through everything thing we have done with Insight Vacations over the past two weeks. She gets genuinely attached to her groups especially this one because we were quite small in number. She has one day off only and off she goes again. She and her husband spend most of their time together in winter.

    The Aussies decided to have our last dinner together.

    Josie & Carl are from North Balwyn and we have a lot in common with them. The also have a house at Newhaven. They will stay in Athens for a week then they will visit relatives in Malta.

    Trevor and Beth are from Adelaide. They have broad interests including a jewelry shop, car wash and horse breeding. We had a lot of laughs with them. Who knows we might see them again in Adelaide one day.

    Our meal was really good and Erin dropped in for one last glass of wine with us. She was relaxed and off the clock. Her husband Hercules isn’t due home until late so she wanted to catch up with us one last time. She is the best Tour Director we have ever had the pleasure of being looked after by a travel group.

    Tomorrow on to Crete.    Read more

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