Fall Break: Grecia

Its been awhile, sorry. Recently returned from a 10 day tour all over Greece, though especially throughout the polypenisian penninsula. I really shouldn't be allowed to complain about the trip because it was pretty much all paid for (except for a few meals) by my Ricci Scholarship. Still, being the constant critic that I am, I have to point out the ups as well as the downs of the Grecian adventure. Bear with me, it was a LONG 10 days.



Right from the airport we met our tour guide, Yoanna, a middle aged Athenian who grew up in south carolina. She made the trip. Yoanna has a resume I could only dream of achieving: she has written guide books on Athens and Greece, is currently a food and wine critic for the Athens press, teaches university classes, had hiked from Athens to Istanbul as part of a political protest, etc..



We then went on a stunning drive along the coast down to cape sounion to see the temple of poseiden. After that breif detour we reached Athens and I immediatly fell in love. It is the grittiest city I have every been in, yet it was also incredibly hip, contemporary and real. Our hotel was right in Pyrssi, a big nightlife area with clubs, cafes, hookah lounges, and pita stands. The hipsters scene in Athens was unlike anything in the states. Girls frizzed their hair up similar to amy winehouse, while boys dreaded their mullets. There were everywhere in the streets hanging out until 5 in the morning. The next morning we saw the Acropolis, which provided awesome views of the city...you could really see how sprawled and overpopulated the city is. Yoanna told us that 2/3rds of Greece live in Athens.



After another great, late night, we headed the next morning on a drive through the mountains to Delphi. We spent the day touring what would be one of many many anceint archeological sites. This one, perched on a dramatic mountain slope, was quite impressive, however. It is the site where the oracle of delphi was. My hotel looked out down the mt. parnassas and into the sea. That evening we went a town over to Arahova, a swanky ski resort town. I had an awesome, intimate meal with Yoanna, a few students, and the faculty of the trip. After dinner and numerous glasses of raki--a hot Grecian liquor infused with honey, the cleared some tables and turned the restaurant into a raucous dancefloor. It was spontaneous, brilliant, and one of the highlights of the trip for me.



The next day was one of the lowlights of the trip--what could have been a short bus ride to olympia (4 hours away) turned into a dragged on day full of overpriced food and annoyingly frequent reststops every 20 minutes. I longed for my family's efficient ways of traveling when we would wake up early and drive straight through to our destination.



The downslop continued at Olympia: a gross hotel, a so-so dinner, a dead tourist town completely void of any local life, and a hot day exploring crappy ruins that were of no interest to any of us. By this time we felt like we were on an retired old person packaged bus tour--we longed for freedom, the beach, and the ability to choose what we wanted to do.



Then it all turned around--we made a quick, no stopping drive from Olympia to the Messian Bay and stayed at an awesome resort right on the water. Although we were only there one night, we made full use of it: swimming in the ocean and pool, drinking margheritas as the sun set and learning greek dances in the moonlight.



The next day we spent the morning touring Mystras, a cool old Byzantine town that is now just well preserved ruins. Then we went to Yoanna's hometown outside of Sparta. This is a place that has never seen a tour bus, she told us. One of my other favorite memories of the trip was our afternoon here. We had a beyond delicious meal, a savager hunt through the town, then hours in the main square drinking, talking, watching the sun set, and enjoying life.



Finally that night we made it to Napflio. This is the most beautiful town we visited by far. Set on the water overlooking the Aegian sea, it had a beautiful, hidden beach, a towering castles, really cool authentic shops, delicious food, and a really cool artsy bar called 'the wrong bar'. We had a great time here. (somewhere in here we also fit in two more archeological sites--epridavros and mycenae)



Finally we were off on the last leg of the trip: Mykonos. I had dreamt of the place all summer and it exceeded all my expectations. After our ridiculous 4 and a half hour ferry, we reached the isalnd late friday night. We stayed at a beautiful, labyrinth of a resort. Saturday a good chunk of us rented ATVs(all terrian vehicles...aka 4x4s) and explored the whole island. It was seriously the coolest thing I may have ever experienced. After being dragged around in a bus all week, the ability to be flying through an island on my own vehicle was perfectly satifying. Everything on Mykonos is white and the postcard image you expect of a Greek island. We had a perfect yet sad final dinner together in town then almost everyone including the staff went out together to a bar on the water called Jackie O's. Megan you would have been in heaven--the whole bar/club was dedicated to Jackie Oneisses, who vacationed here...i think...



Wow this is a long post. I congradulate anyone who read the whole thing. I'm keeping it cool in Rome this weekend, hoping to explore some more and get caught up on research. You'll here from me soon.

Ciao!