Day 28 - Friday 31 May - Athens to Corinth

Friday 31 May

We packed up and at the station activated our Eurail passes before catching the 10:36 outer-urban train to Corinth.   We taxied to our bnb, a semi-underground studio, settled and walked 50m to the supermarket on the corner (named Sklavenitis).

We were warned in the host's notes that many shops open 9:00-14:00,  then may open 16:00-19:00 at the end of the week.  So after lunch we had a siesta, the at 16:00 went walking to find a tourist office for advice.  The whole city was like a rural town on a Sunday - dead as dead. We walked to the waterfront which was pleasant, but so quiet. The only  people about were groups of tourists, no doubt wondering 'where is everyone?'.  We found the bus station, but the information we got to help plan the next couple of days was hard to understand, so I think we'll just stick with taxis for this town.

So we went back home, re-planned our weekend, and caught up on news.

ws.            

Day 27 - Thursday 30 May - Aegina Island

Thursday 30 May

Greek Island Cruising

We took 2 subway trains  to Pireaus, the port of Athens, bought tickets, and boarded the red ferry.  It left the dock at 10:30 and we were off to Aegina, with one seagull in tow.

t was a smooth ride.  We sat on the top in the sun, and watched Athens shrink and Aegina grow, and by the time we arrived there would have been 50 seagulls swooping and soaring with us.  Some passengers were buying boxes of biscuits and throwing bits, and occasionally one was caught.

 

I had read that there were 3 local bus routes that left through the town centre, so we walked along, looking for a bus stop or a tourist office, but no luck.  On the shop side were heaps of cafes and bars, on the water side large and very large water craft.  So we walked back, and then found the bus station on the other side of the wharf.  We got tickets for the next bus - it didn't matter where it went - and ate our lunch while we waited.

The bus took us right across the island to Ag. Marina, quite hilly, past lots of olive groves and pistachio orchards.

 

The first landmark was St Nectarios' cathedral, who is one of Greece's most recent saints.

 

 Later we passed the ruins of the Temple of Aphaia from C5 BC,

then went down into the town, which was rather like Stanley south of Hong Kong.

We caught the same bus back, then went to the nearby beach, and after a quick change behind a sarong and some bushes, went in for our first Mediterranean Sea swim.   It was shallow so quite warm, and very, very calm, except for the occasional wake wave from a passing boat.

 So now we can wear our Palestine t-shirts, " Red Sea, Med Sea, Dead Sea"

 
We were there for about an hour, then got dressed again behind the sarong, bought icecreams and pistachios, and boarded the blue boat back to Athens.

 

There was no washing machine at our bnb, so we packed up and walked 10 mins to the laundromat, so had dinner late.  Kids were still playing in the yard around the church opposite our front door, the local playground and meeting place.

Day 26 - Wednesday 29 May - Athens acropolis area

Wednesday 29 May

Our airbnb host warned us about the street market this morning, and we could hear them setting up as we got up.  So we went down to buy strawberries for muesli, and other fresh vegies, eggs for sandwiches, but passed on the fish.

We went to the station and eventually got one subway ticket for 2 rides, but the turnstile wouldn't let it be used twice, so David squeezed through with someone else.  We went about 6 stations to Acropoli, and walked up to the Hill of Philopappos, opposite the entrance to the Acropolis.  We stopped at the 'Prison of Socrates??', and the church of St Demitrios, then climbed slowly to the top.

 Here is the C2 memorial to Philopappos who was a prince of Syria and benefactor of Athens.  There are good views in all directions.  

 The Acropolis, the Parthenon and Mt Lycabettus behind.

Towards Pireas

The museum in the centre, above it are Hadrian's Arch and the Temple of Zeus,  and to their right just above the trees is the Olympic Stadium.

Back at street level, we stopped for early lunch (homemade), then walked back to the Acropolis Museum.  In 2014 we were a bit ruined-out, and hadn't visited, but we thought we really should.

The sub-subterranean excavations at the entrance, and extending back under the building, have been dug out more, and they are going to be opened for public walking in a couple of months.

But we went inside.  It is a big bright and spacious building, with some areas photo-friendly, but others places where the guards reprimanded you if you tried.  (Why?  What harm does it do?)  There are lots of exhibits, big and small, original and reproduced and sometimes it's hard to tell what's what. 

 A gift to the god who healed the eyes of the donor's wife.

The Lego Acropolis, made in Sydney, and with various anachronistic items.

We tried to think of somewhere else to go, but couldn't, so came home.

 Our shower curtain

 Our apartment

Day 25 - Tuesday 28 May - Thessaloniki to Athens

Tuesday 28 May

We had a slow morning, packing up and tidying the apartment.  We left at about 11am for the 10min walk to the station, and got the 12:15 train to Athens.

We had spare seats beside us until Larissa, where we'd left the main highway yesterday, but then the carriage was full from then on.
 

 Our morning and afternoon tea stops yesterday.

It was a fast, smooth ride, and we reached Athens Larisa St station at 16:30.

 Mt Parnassas

It was only a 10min walk to our bnb, and we were met outside by our hostess Maria, who took us upstairs and showed us the ropes.  We loafed about a bit and then walked 1 block to the supermarket, and the evening was the same as usual.

Day 24 - Monday 27 May - Meteora

Monday 27 May,    Meteora

This was a full day bus trip, and we made sure that we were at the appointed pick-up time nice and early.  Even so, we were still 30mins late leaving the city (still feeling gypped about our missed tour in Sofia 😖 😠 ).

It is about 240km away, so it took a while to get there.  We went first past paddy fields (surprised), Mt Olympus (home of the gods),

through tunnels (one 6kms long), past farm land, villages and towns. 

 A lavender field

 A nicely planted ex-quarry

By the time we got there, it was raining.  There are 6 working monasteries, down from 28 set up in C14.  In those days, the building materials, daily needs and people were hoisted up in nets and barrels, or climbed by ladder.  These days there are steps and bridges, and tour groups are allocated 2 monasteries to keep congestion down. 
So we went to Varlaam Monastery, which is quite big, with museum pieces and lots of outdoor space, then St Barbara of Roussanou Nunnery,  which is much smaller.

The huge barrel and its capstan and launch ramp.

Down into the yard.  A cat is walking just above the white blob beside the dirt pile.

We don't really like this style of icon.  The painted faces look strangely flat against the wonderfully embossed gold, but the carved frames are magnificent.

We had been told that they were particular about dress, and that there should be no bare shoulders or knees.  So guys went in with shorts, and ladies had to wrap a skirt around themselves over their trousers.  No photographing is allowed in the churches, but in the vestibule and outside it was ok. 

 

On the terrace

 

 Looking down to Kalabaka

and across to Roussanou.

From Roussanou looking back up to Varlaam.
 

 Guard dogs

The ladder in, but now there's a bridge.

 The beautiful garden.

Then we drove down the mountain to Kalabaka town for late lunch, then headed home.
 

 Looking back up to St Stefanos monastery.