Munich airport

Flying over the Alps just before arriving in Munich this morning. A four hour wait until our next flight to Athens.
Getting our bearings

Our arrival in Athens was surprisingly chilly (14 degrees) with howling winds. Not the Greece I had envisaged when I packed an array of summer dresses, shorts and tops.
Yesterday was spent walking theLeia mais
Acropolis

We booked a 5pm entry ticket to visit the Acropolis because we thought it would be hot(it wasn't) and less crowded (probably). It was amazing to see the Parthenon and other structures and considerLeia mais
May Day

May Day is a big deal in Greece and nearly everything closed for the day including ancient sites and museums. It was a day for walking and watching the huge may day rally around Syntagma square. TheLeia mais
Museum overload

Yesterday we visited the Benaki Museum of Greek Culture and the Museum of Cycladic Art. Both were excellent with the Benaki covering from 7,000BC to modern times and the other covering the CycladicLeia mais
And another museum

This morning we visited the Acropolis Museum. An early start to arrive at opening time with fewer visitors 🤣. It is a beautiful building designed to look over the Acropolis and glimpses of theLeia mais
Non Museum Days 1

We decided to have a break from museums and yesterday took a bus to the coastal suburbs of Athens aka the Athens Riviera with our English friends who are spending a week in Athens with us. After a fewLeia mais
Non Museum Day 2

Relaxing day today with a stroll through the atmospheric and somewhat quirky (see Little Kook cafe photos) Pyssri district and the Central Market.
Ancient, Modern and the Byzantine

No visit to Athens would be complete without a visit to the National Archeological Museum. There are some truly amazing ancient artifacts on display.
Not everything in Athens is about ancientLeia mais
Around our neighborhood

Exarchia is an interesting mix of old and young people who seem to spend their days and nights eating and drinking. We cannot believe the number of cafes and eateries not just in our area but all overLeia mais
Acropolis Views

Wherever you turn, there seems to be a view of the Acropolis. It really is an amazing feature of Athens.
Our Greek Road Trip Begins!

After 2 enjoyable weeks in Athens, we picked up our little hire car and set off with some trepidation (for me as navigator) and for Dominic (as driver of a small, left hand, manual car with an engineLeia mais
Meteora Monastery Madness

We spent 3 nights in Meteora. Meteora is home to an other worldly array of sandstone karsts or pillars rising from the plains and on which many Byzantine monasteries were built around the 12thLeia mais
Ioannina

Our drive from Meteora to Ioannina over the Pindus mountain range was hair raising. Tight winding roads in thick fog and difficult to see cars in front. Once we reached the summit (about 1,800 metres)Leia mais
Vassaliki on Lefkada 'island'

Lefkada is the southernmost island in the Ionian group. It's connected to the mainland by a land bridge, hence 'island'.
It's quite a large mountainous island with spectacular views of sheer cliffs,Leia mais
Ancient Olympia

We travelled to Olympia crossing the Gulf of Corinth on an amazing bridge (toll 15 euros). Once we left the freeway at Patra, we were on some very local winding roads to Olympia and thought thingsLeia mais
Stemnitsa

As foreshadowed in the previous post, we didn't think the local winding roads could get worse. Because the main route to Stemnitsa was closed due to a land slide, bloody Google maps directed us upLeia mais
Road party on the way to Stemnitsa

Turn the volume on
Ancient Messini

En route to Kalamata, we called into Ancient Messini. Birth place of Zeus and a strategic position so that locals could keep an eye out for attacks by the Spartans.
It cascades down the valley andLeia mais
Kalamatan calamities

The less said about Kalamata the better!
From booking the wrong days to having our washing trapped in the washing machine on a never ending cycle, everything seemed to go wrong. My cash card wasLeia mais
Pylos

After the trauma of Kalamata, Pylos was a pleasant respite. Situated on the Bay of Navarino, it was the site of a decisive battle for Greece's independence from the Ottoman Empire. British, French andLeia mais
Mani Peninsula

We stayed in a tranquil apartment overlooking Neo Otilyo and across the bay to Lemeni.
Our drive around the bottom portion of the Mani was truly spectacular. The bleak and inhospitable terrain offsetLeia mais
Monemvasia

We stayed in the town adjacent to Monemvasia. Monemvasia is a large rock fortress which was inhabited over the centries by Byzantine traders, and ruled back and forth by the Ottomans and Venetions.Leia mais
Sparta/Mystras

Very little remains of ancient Sparta. Today, it is a pleasant modern city with wide streets and lively public squares.
We overnighted here in order to visit nearby Mystras.
Mystras was theLeia mais
Nafplio

Nafplio is our last stop before we head back to Athens tomorrow.
We have been using it as a base for day trips but also just relaxing before our long trip home on Sunday.
Nafplio is a pretty littleLeia mais
ViajanteAlmost there xxx
ViajanteI'm so excited for you both. Keep posting x
ViajanteWow! What a view 😍
ViajanteSo pleased we can follow & enjoy your trip💜