• Tannia Nieto

Greece 2022

Summer trip/babymoon Read more
  • Trip start
    August 24, 2022

    Palaiokastritsa (Corfu)

    August 24, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Arrived today in Corfu and took out our rental car. The lady running the BUDGET parking lot was super friendly and handed us a beach umbrella to borrow during our stay as well a liter of cold water. We think maybe she saw my pregnant belly and gave us some freebies. We took photos of the car to ensure we didn’t get blamed for an extra scratch (ironic, because we ended up adding a nice big scratch on the front left bumper that we had to pay for 😭)

    We were hungry coming out of the parking and I looked up some restaurants on our way to Palaiokastritsa (where we booked our 4-night stay). By some miracle we ended up at a place called Karampampas, which was a super local classic grill place. We could barely communicate with the owner but he was so smiley and brought us some meat on a stick to ask if that’s what we wanted. We agreed hoping for the best. Finally he brought it out along with some grilled tomatoes, spicy pepper, fries, pita bread, and tzatziki. Turns out the meat was lamb and it was sooo juicy and delicious. All the other items on the plate were also tasty on their own and we truly were savoring each bite. It was the perfect kick off to our trip!

    Once we settled into our hotel we headed out with the car to explore the Palaiokastritsa coast. We found a road up to one of the cliffs, saw donkeys, and snapped some pics of the scenery.
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  • La Grotta Beach (Corfu)

    August 25, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    We had a lazy morning today. Knowing we have plenty of time to explore the island, we spent the morning booking the rest of our lodging and car rental in Crete (typical us, waiting till last minute and suffering the consequences with higher prices 😅).

    In the afternoon we went to a place called La Grotta, which is a bar right that is almost at sea level at the bottom of a cliff. We went swimming, had a drink, watched other people climb up the cliff and dive into the water, and relaxed. Important to note that Vincent felt baby girl move today for the first time! She was kicking hard and I grabbed Vincent’s hand just in time to feel her twice. It was a happy and exciting moment in a beautiful place.

    For dinner we did some googling to find something well rated. We drove up the town of Lakones and stopped at several viewpoints to snap photos. Then we went to Flavor Restaurant where we would return again two days later because the food and price were excellent. The only thing we didn’t enjoy was the dessert (pictured) that was a very sweet lemon cake DRENCHED in super sweet syrup, served with yogurt ice cream with honey (more sugar) on top. We are good with dessert for the next week!
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  • Sidari (Corfu)

    August 26, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Sidari was one of the stops on our road trip along the northern coast of Corfu. It is a touristic beach town with lots of souvenir shops and tavernas advertising “free swimming pool” for customers. Our main focus in this stop was to see the “canal d’amour” (last set of photos/videos). But it was overly crowded so we stayed long enough to get some photos and that’s it.

    Before we got to this spot, we discovered a little, more secluded canal called Apotripi Beach where we hung out for a couple hours. Vincent and I swam all the way to “mermaid’s rock” (pictured in the third photo, the rock formation on the left). That was enough for me to enjoy the view and the accomplishment.. of course Vincent then swam to the rock on the right and he said the view of all the cliffs from there was amazing.

    The other towns we visited today were: Agios Giorgios (beach town, although not as touristy), beach Kalami (nothing special, and the road there was narrow, windy, and bumpy), and Ipsos (looks like young and hip beach town.. could have spent a night here had we done more research)
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  • Corfu Town

    August 28, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    We dropped off the car around 1pm in the airport and then took a quick bus ride to Corfu town. Thankfully we found a luggage storage place where we could leave our carry-ons the full day for 5€ while we explored the town.

    The old Corfu town reminded us a lot of some Italian towns we’ve been to in Sicily. You can get from one end to the other in 20 mins walking and we enjoyed getting a little lost in the town and window shopping. After lunch we ended up at a small cafe for dessert and to get a break from the sun. They they served us a massive but delicious stack of pancakes with Nutella and banana (pictured) that stuffed us for the rest of the day.

    Around 7:30pm we picked up our luggage and waited for the bus to take us back to the airport. Tonight we sleep in Athens!
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  • Athens for 24 hrs

    August 29, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    Took a very small plane from Corfu to Athens (pictured) around 10pm. We didn’t get settled in Athens until around 1 am. Our Airbnb is worth mentioning… it was a room inside a physical therapy office. We knew this when we booked, but still we’re not prepared for the horror-movie feels (see last video). In the end it was comfortable enough for two quick nights of sleep, and located in the Monastiraki neighborhood which is in the center of all the action.

    WE DID NOT MAKE IT TO THE ACROPOLIS TODAY. The plan had been to go first thing in the morning before taking a free tour at 10am. We were too tired to get up early so we decided to push it to the early evening when the crowds were lower and the weather was cooler. That never happened bc I ended up having to deal with a couple things for work and then we had dinner plans (separate post).

    The free tour took us to a few interesting places, like the academia building (picture 1) and the first ever modern Olympic stadium (picture 2). After we went to the central market and surprisingly didn’t buy anything, and had recommended gyros at Bouloukos Kebab (Vincent and I actually thought they were good but not amazing, contrary to many reviews). Overall we had a nice day in Athens and we realized we could have spent an extra day or two to get the most out of it, but are not regretful since we have exciting things ahead!
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  • Fancy evening in Athens

    August 29, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

    Every trip we coordinate one or two fine dining dinners. In Athens, Vincent found this place called Aleria which is not a Michelin star but from pictures and reviews it was clearly worth a reservation.

    We were pleasantly surprised by the sophistication of the food from taste to presentation! The service was also excellent. I got the vegetarian degustation and Vincent got the Land and Sea. In the end we both tried each other’s dishes.

    Right before dessert a waiter came by to give us dessert wine we had not asked for. Right away we said “no thanks”, and he insisted that it was for our anniversary celebration… Vincent and I forgot we had put that on our reservation 😆. Told him I would pass because I’m pregnant and he insisted I take a just a couple sips, which I could not resist. The dessert plates came out with a “happy anniversary “ sign in written with white chocolate, which we gladly ate. All in all a pleasant experience and would recommend!

    After we walked back to the apartment and noticed that our neighborhood at night has a great vibe. Unique and chic bars with nice music and ambiance. Too bad I’m pregnant and Vincent is cutting back on drinking because it would have been nice to sit and enjoy a beverage. Instead, we headed back to get some sleep before our 6am wake up call to catch the ferry to Milos!
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  • Milos- Papafragas Beach and Adamantas

    August 30, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Arrived in Adamantas today by ferry from Athens. Our hotel (Portiani) was only a 2 minute walk from the port, so we arrived promptly and left all our luggage while our room was ready and we got something to eat. We used this time to plan out our 3-night stay in Milos. We quickly learned that the bus is the cheapest way to get around and its actually very puntual and reliable. All buses leave from Adamantas and can take you to most of the island. The bus stop was next to the hotel, making it even more convenient.

    After settling into our hotel room we headed out to our first point of interest: Papafragas caves. Unfortunately, we realized that the way to enter one of the most picturesque caves was a bit dangerous (there were warning signs all over). Had I not been pregnant we would have followed others and gone down, but we didn’t want to risk anything with our baby girl.

    We went to the more accessible coves and still had a very nice time swimming with our snorkeling gear and snapping some pics. Once we had enough sun and water we headed back to our port town.

    At dinner time we walked through the town to a laid back restaurant on the other side by the ocean. Dinner was good and the cheapest we’ve had! On our way back we walked by the beach at night. It would have been pitch black had it not been for the white boats anchored in the ocean and the bright stars in the sky. I attempted to capture a photo of it.
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  • Sarakiniko (Milos)

    August 31, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Today we explored the beach we were most excited to see in Milos: Sarakiniko. Some people call it the moon beach because it kinda looks like you’re walking on the moon with the white rock formations. We were pleasantly surprised by the beach.. not too packed and as beautiful as imagined.

    We found a cliff where people were jumping off so of course Vincent had to try it and go on the highest one. I found some spots to take some photos of my growing belly and of both of us (who needs a professional maternity photo session when you have Sarakiniko!).

    There wasn’t a great spot to put our umbrella to get a break from the sun, but we did find a cool little cave to relax in the shade. Our time was cut a little short because we needed to catch the bus (only comes every 2 hrs). It was so enjoyable we might come back tomorrow!
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  • Sunset at Klima

    August 31, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Klima is a small fisherman village close to the main town of Trypiti. It deserves its own post because when I was researching Milos, I envisioned staying in one of these villages, waking up with the ocean literally on your doorstep. We were a little late to book and didn’t stay here, but I was determined to at least watch the sunset from this little town. And in the end it was one of my favorite things we did in Milos!

    To get there we walked from Trypiti to Klima which was about a 20 min walk downhill with some stairs. The way back up was rough 😅. We were both profusely sweating as we arrived at the restaurant where we made reservations in Trypiti. If we ever come back we will make it a point to stay at one of these villages.
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  • Trypiti festival

    August 31, 2022 in Greece ⋅ 🌙 26 °C

    After the sunset at Klima we had dinner and went to the end-of-summer festival in Trypiti. We ate outdoors in Barrielo restaurant which was fantastic. Somehow forgot to take photos, but we had a “cheesecake” for an appetizer that was savory with a little sweetness from the berry marmalade, and it was fantastic. Vincent ate a rabbit in an orange and red wine sauce and I ate gnocchi with beef and truffle.

    After dinner we walked less than a block to arrive at the festival where lots of Greek families gathered around the courtyards of the church. It was chaotic. We l watched them build a bonfire and they had kids and teenagers jumping over the fire! It’s supposed to be a way to say bye to summer bring on good luck for the winter months. I took a video to capture this. We stuck around till 11 and then caught the bus back to our hotel in Adamantas.
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  • Boat trip- Kleftiko and Gerakas

    September 1, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    This morning we took a half day boat trip along the southwest coastline of Milos. The rock formations contrasted by the turquoise ocean was gorgeous. We went swimming in two spots, saw many fishes, and really enjoyed the trip. We’re glad we only did the half day because the full day tours would have tried to cover too much without enjoying each spot in full.

    I saw a couple with a little baby girl and I started a conversation by just saying I love seeing parents with babies out traveling because it inspires me to do the same. They were really nice and we quickly talked about many things, including the fact that they moved to Denmark because they work in the food industry. Curious, I asked what they did, and they both worked at Noma in Copenhagen. It’s the top rated restaurant in the world! It was very cool to hear a bit about their experience. Come to think of it, I should have tried to remain in contact with her I’m case we visit the restaurant in the future!
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  • Sarakiniko (again)

    September 1, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    We enjoyed this spot so much that after our boat trip and an hour of rest at our hotel, we went back to Sarakiniko! We stayed until around 6 when the sun was starting to go down. Made everything prettier with that golden hour glow. Of course, Vincent jumped off the cliff again and we got some videos of it.Read more

  • Evening in Adamantas

    September 1, 2022 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    We spent the last night in Milos in our home base of Adamantas. A local recommended the seafood restaurant Nostos. It was absolutely delicious but portions were unexpectedly huge! The restaurant had a very nice summer night vibe.

    On our walk home we saw an outdoor arcade with a basketball game. Before I even said anything, Vincent asked, “you’re gonna wanna play won’t you?” Haha he was spot on. I played a couple of games until my arm hurt and then we called it a night.
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    Trip end
    September 11, 2022