Yesterday we set sail and said our goodbyes to our beloved Santorini....I shall see you again soon I'm sure! It's been more then perfect the time I spent there.
I packed snacks, and downloaded a new iBook and was ready for the long 8 hour ferry. It felt MUCH longer when you don't sleep most of the way...on the way over it leaves first thing in the morning and it's great cause you can just curl up and sleep the time away but the ones going back to Athens don't leave until 3:30 pm and arrive at 11:30 pm so you'd be really screwed for nighttime if you slept the whole way.
As soon as we departed I dove full on into my new book by Louise Hay and Cheryl Richardson....two woman who are quickly becoming my favorite authors. It was an easy read and it took me into myself, my thoughts and patterns. It was so good I didn't put it down and after a few hours I'd read all 238 pages of it :).....and still had 4 hours left....ugh.
But we finally arrived back in Athens, a place we weren't so excited to see but tried our best to change our negative that's towards the city.
We booked a hostel within minutes to the ferry post so we could settle into our private 3 person rom, Chelsea, Roberto and I and we drifted off into the night.
This morning started around 8:30 as we replaced our things and Roberto and I headed for the door. I had to go pickup my temporary passport and Roberto was flying off to Berlin....so Chelsea held down the fort back at the hostel.
It was nice to ride the subway with someone as being back in Athens is was hard not to be a little edgy...especially when carrying all of your belongings when moving from place to place. But all was well. I said my goodbyes and wished Roberto well and like that he was gone.
I only had a few more stops til I reached my destination and was within a short walk to the new hostel. I dropped my things and set off to the embassy as I couldn't check in there until 2 pm. Made it to the embassy and not long before I was holding that beautiful white temporary passport in my hands. I finally feel complete. I have spent the last 13 days regrouping, resting, rebuilding my stash of electronics and finally with my passport and I reunited I was ready for the next adventure.
13 days ago I wanted to be on the next plane outta here but now....I'm not ready to come home. Now I'm thinking of the 22 days I technically have left on my backpack trip and trying to come up with a plan to stay. All I need is an income so where can I find a job?
Funny how things change....when I started this trek back in October my plan was to do it big because it's my once in a lifetime, something I have talked about doing for pretty much as long as anyone has known me. Now I can't imagine this being it. I adore travel and for the most part I feel it suits me well. I have more lessons to learn, challenges to face, people to meet and random different cuisines to try. I must find away to keep traveling....if not right away then as soon as possible.
I want to come home and visit with family and friends, give my dog a squish and maybe try to shove her in my backpack and then be gone again. Hmmm I wonder if this could become real....we shall see.
A traveller at heart and not content to sit still very long it's the perfect solution. Your world is constantly changing when you travel and some people thrive for it? I am one of them.
So with my belongings back in order I find myself with the pep in my step returned, my head held high and I'm ready to face the world. Things may knock me down and throw me around for awhile but I am strong willed and whole hearted and it sure won't take me outta the game.
Besides....what would life be if it was all just rainbows and butterflies anyway....
Cheers to that!
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Merry Christmas from Santorini Greece!
Christmas Bliss!!! Chelsea and I have been on Santorini for 5 days now and were joined by Roberto 2 days ago. We met him at our couchsurfer, Digenis's house back in Athens and he decided to join us over the Holidays :)
We have done a lot of takin it easy since weve been here haha. We sleep in late, go to bed early and we tend to make daily trips down to the local baker that's open 24/7, the Greeks sure love to bake!! Mmmmmm.
We rented a car yesterday and drove all over the Island. We went to see the red sand beach, walked around Fira, ventured up into Oia and took fabulous pictures and watched the sunset from the best place in the world....as they advertise it. It's easy to find your way around as there are only main roads to go on so getting from village to village is simple. We drove the length of the island back into our little homestead of Perissa.
I love Santorini and can only imagine what it's like when it's booming in the summer. I equally love being here in off season as its so where I needed to be right now. It's quiet, peaceful and beautiful. Only a few shops are open where we are staying in Perissa which is perfect. It kind of looks like a ghost town at the moment.
It's been sunny the past few days but REALLY windy! That's ok though...just makes for fun hair in photographs haha.
This morning is Christmas....Merry Cristmas to all my family and friends back home. I love you and miss you so know that I'm thinking about you today.
We made a pact when we got here that on Christmas day we'd go swimming so this morning Chelsea, Roberto and I got up, walked down to the Aegean ocean and RAN in! It took my breath away at first but after a few minutes it was no colder then our water back home in the summer time. It's defiantly not quite a polar bear swim in Greece when it's still about 15 degrees out....even though the locals sure thought we were nuts! People kept driving by and looking at us silly folk floating on the waves and having a grand ol time. I personally couldn't think of a better way to have welcomed Christmas morning in a beautiful place, with great people and a perfect sunshiny day <3
I hope to post some photos again soon!!!!
Love you and miss you all xoxoxoxox
We have done a lot of takin it easy since weve been here haha. We sleep in late, go to bed early and we tend to make daily trips down to the local baker that's open 24/7, the Greeks sure love to bake!! Mmmmmm.
We rented a car yesterday and drove all over the Island. We went to see the red sand beach, walked around Fira, ventured up into Oia and took fabulous pictures and watched the sunset from the best place in the world....as they advertise it. It's easy to find your way around as there are only main roads to go on so getting from village to village is simple. We drove the length of the island back into our little homestead of Perissa.
I love Santorini and can only imagine what it's like when it's booming in the summer. I equally love being here in off season as its so where I needed to be right now. It's quiet, peaceful and beautiful. Only a few shops are open where we are staying in Perissa which is perfect. It kind of looks like a ghost town at the moment.
It's been sunny the past few days but REALLY windy! That's ok though...just makes for fun hair in photographs haha.
This morning is Christmas....Merry Cristmas to all my family and friends back home. I love you and miss you so know that I'm thinking about you today.
We made a pact when we got here that on Christmas day we'd go swimming so this morning Chelsea, Roberto and I got up, walked down to the Aegean ocean and RAN in! It took my breath away at first but after a few minutes it was no colder then our water back home in the summer time. It's defiantly not quite a polar bear swim in Greece when it's still about 15 degrees out....even though the locals sure thought we were nuts! People kept driving by and looking at us silly folk floating on the waves and having a grand ol time. I personally couldn't think of a better way to have welcomed Christmas morning in a beautiful place, with great people and a perfect sunshiny day <3
I hope to post some photos again soon!!!!
Love you and miss you all xoxoxoxox
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Time to Reflect
Well it's been a week since the whole shebang went down. I had to wait it out in Athens for 5 days longer then we wanted to be in Athens. Chelsea was a trooper and stayed there with me. Although we lost a lot of our adventurous spirits after that we stuck pretty close to home...home at the time being our couchsurf hosts.
I found I was afraid to venture out on my own in Athens and living in a state of fear is not fun nor in anyway healthy as then you simply attract more of it into your life. So "I put on my big girl panties" as my mom would say and did what I had to do. I walked half an hour to the Canadian Embassy when I had to for all the logistics and back again. It was tough but I did it and am all the stronger for it. I went out when I had to and stayed in when I could.
The day my visa card arrived in Athens and my passport replacement request had been sent out was a relief....it meant that everything I could do for now was done and we could get the heck out of dodge.
By the time I got home from the Embassy, ate dinner, headed for the mall to restock on some of my stolen items and got home again it was 11:30pm. We decided we wanted out of here ASAP and were bound and determined to be on the next ferry....at 7:25 am which meant being at the docks to buy a ticket at 6:25. It took an hour to get there from where we were staying so after sleeping for only 3 hours we made the trek and arrived on time to be on that boat.
Ahhhh we could breathe, we were on our way out. Out of Athens, out of chaos and out of fear.
I have since learned this is all pretty new for the Greek people as they too are taken by surprise of all the thieves. It's all come about since Greece was made to join the European Union which they entered into already in debt. They covered it up as not to look bad but in doing so their bad situation turned worse. People who were already poor now had nothing and with the increase of immigrants coming into Greece from Romainia, Albaina and Pakistan things were looking grim. Even people who had Government jobs were not getting paid their wages so thing like garbage men just stopped working and the garbage piled up. They called it a white strike....people weren't actually striking but they weren't working or doing anything for that matter. It's all very sad really.
For me this is just a bad experience, one I will carry on from and return back home and be away. But for the people here this is everyday life and what they have to live with.
It's so easy to ramble on here as I have so much to say but this is not at all where I intended to go with this entry.
My reflections.....as stated in one of my most favorite quotes "Not all who wander are lost" While traveling, getting lost is part of the adventure and as my friend Chelsea commented....I have now been lost in every country I've stepped foot in. And in turn lost myself along the way. It takes courage, strength, and desire to step out of your comfort zone and face the world on your own. You have to be willing to see the world as it is and not as you want it to be or imagined it to be.
Learning to watch yourself and your actions becomes much more apparent when you have someone else who is able to hold that mirror up to look back at yourself. Going at this alone I felt strong, capable, independent and I still do though through it all I've learned just how much I appreciate good company and good friends. Without a friend this easily couldve taken me out of the game as I was rocked to the core and ready to throw it all away and come home. Traveling means you are out of your element ALL the time. Nothing is familiar. Every morning you wake up in a different place your forced to start over and when that's something you've never been faced with its an interesting challenge. I'm starting to understand now why they say traveling changes people. It's not so much the act of travel but the experience and growth you achieve during those times, both good and not so good. Either way it's stil
An experience to be had.
Being robbed wasn't just about losing my material possessions, it was about being violated and broken open. Yes in the big scheme of things it was all just stuff and important documents that although inconvenient can all be replaced with time and money. I am safe, I am still here and I'm carrying on. I have the power of choice....I can choose to let this break me or I can pick up the pieces and keep going. There's were days it was tough but thanks to my mom for being so supportive both emotionally and financially even though I'd have to wake her up in the middle of the night her time to talk, for Chelsea, my new friend who became my "sugar momma" while I had nothing to my name and listening to my countless renditions of what could have been and what I'm gonna do about it, for all the people who wrote me messages of strength and encouragement....you are the ones behind me who helped me get throught it. So for that I send thanks to each and everyone one of you, you will never really understand just how much of an impact you made on me.
Setting foot on Santorini is just what I needed. It's given me time to sleep, breathe, take time out from the world and FEEL everything that's going on. Up until now I'd really had to be frozen in time just to survive. I am so sensitive to the world so although this would be traumatic for any person, for me this was mind blowing. Just being in big cities is overwhelming so this adventure has been mountainous....if that's a word haha. So being here has allowed me to open again, let go of the fear that was surrounding me, drop the attitude towards strangers for fear they might hurt me and I'm in the process of returning to myself.
Well....I've now lost count to all the times I've been lost and lost myself....but not all that wander are lost...and here I am!
I found I was afraid to venture out on my own in Athens and living in a state of fear is not fun nor in anyway healthy as then you simply attract more of it into your life. So "I put on my big girl panties" as my mom would say and did what I had to do. I walked half an hour to the Canadian Embassy when I had to for all the logistics and back again. It was tough but I did it and am all the stronger for it. I went out when I had to and stayed in when I could.
The day my visa card arrived in Athens and my passport replacement request had been sent out was a relief....it meant that everything I could do for now was done and we could get the heck out of dodge.
By the time I got home from the Embassy, ate dinner, headed for the mall to restock on some of my stolen items and got home again it was 11:30pm. We decided we wanted out of here ASAP and were bound and determined to be on the next ferry....at 7:25 am which meant being at the docks to buy a ticket at 6:25. It took an hour to get there from where we were staying so after sleeping for only 3 hours we made the trek and arrived on time to be on that boat.
Ahhhh we could breathe, we were on our way out. Out of Athens, out of chaos and out of fear.
I have since learned this is all pretty new for the Greek people as they too are taken by surprise of all the thieves. It's all come about since Greece was made to join the European Union which they entered into already in debt. They covered it up as not to look bad but in doing so their bad situation turned worse. People who were already poor now had nothing and with the increase of immigrants coming into Greece from Romainia, Albaina and Pakistan things were looking grim. Even people who had Government jobs were not getting paid their wages so thing like garbage men just stopped working and the garbage piled up. They called it a white strike....people weren't actually striking but they weren't working or doing anything for that matter. It's all very sad really.
For me this is just a bad experience, one I will carry on from and return back home and be away. But for the people here this is everyday life and what they have to live with.
It's so easy to ramble on here as I have so much to say but this is not at all where I intended to go with this entry.
My reflections.....as stated in one of my most favorite quotes "Not all who wander are lost" While traveling, getting lost is part of the adventure and as my friend Chelsea commented....I have now been lost in every country I've stepped foot in. And in turn lost myself along the way. It takes courage, strength, and desire to step out of your comfort zone and face the world on your own. You have to be willing to see the world as it is and not as you want it to be or imagined it to be.
Learning to watch yourself and your actions becomes much more apparent when you have someone else who is able to hold that mirror up to look back at yourself. Going at this alone I felt strong, capable, independent and I still do though through it all I've learned just how much I appreciate good company and good friends. Without a friend this easily couldve taken me out of the game as I was rocked to the core and ready to throw it all away and come home. Traveling means you are out of your element ALL the time. Nothing is familiar. Every morning you wake up in a different place your forced to start over and when that's something you've never been faced with its an interesting challenge. I'm starting to understand now why they say traveling changes people. It's not so much the act of travel but the experience and growth you achieve during those times, both good and not so good. Either way it's stil
An experience to be had.
Being robbed wasn't just about losing my material possessions, it was about being violated and broken open. Yes in the big scheme of things it was all just stuff and important documents that although inconvenient can all be replaced with time and money. I am safe, I am still here and I'm carrying on. I have the power of choice....I can choose to let this break me or I can pick up the pieces and keep going. There's were days it was tough but thanks to my mom for being so supportive both emotionally and financially even though I'd have to wake her up in the middle of the night her time to talk, for Chelsea, my new friend who became my "sugar momma" while I had nothing to my name and listening to my countless renditions of what could have been and what I'm gonna do about it, for all the people who wrote me messages of strength and encouragement....you are the ones behind me who helped me get throught it. So for that I send thanks to each and everyone one of you, you will never really understand just how much of an impact you made on me.
Setting foot on Santorini is just what I needed. It's given me time to sleep, breathe, take time out from the world and FEEL everything that's going on. Up until now I'd really had to be frozen in time just to survive. I am so sensitive to the world so although this would be traumatic for any person, for me this was mind blowing. Just being in big cities is overwhelming so this adventure has been mountainous....if that's a word haha. So being here has allowed me to open again, let go of the fear that was surrounding me, drop the attitude towards strangers for fear they might hurt me and I'm in the process of returning to myself.
Well....I've now lost count to all the times I've been lost and lost myself....but not all that wander are lost...and here I am!
Monday, December 19, 2011
I really really HATE Athens!
I woke up in the morning and wasn't in any rush. My flight wasn't until 5 pm but George was heading out so we left the house at 11 am. I figured I'd go in search of breakfast before hanging out in a coffee shop til it was time to head to the airport. Chelsea said she'd join me so off we went to find Starbucks cause they always have wifi. She offered to carry my little backpack since I was carrying my huge pack and all my stuff cause I was heading to the airport and she only had her purse cause she was staying for the day.
I figured it would be better to find a Starbucks on my route to the airport rather then back tracking to the one we already knew so we headed in the general city center direction and got off at Omonia square. We walked around the circle twice trying to find one, asked a few locals when a nice man who was from Canada but now lives there pointed us inthe direction. Before leaving he told us to be careful.
So off we went around the corner and we should find it....nope.
We gave up, we were ready to head to the next main square so were walking back to the subway when something nasty splashed on our backs and sides. The man behind us started pointing up in the sky and saying it's the birds that pooped on us. Chelsea began to freak out.....I tried to tell her to nevermind and let just get to where we are going. A few steps around the corner we stopped to wipe it off. The man had napkins so we were thankful for something to wipe it off with. It all went so fast but I'll tell it how I remember it to be, Chelsea may have another story.
I just wanted to find food by this point so was trying to just get this all over with as fast as possible and move on. Chelsea was turning around trying to wipe stuff off herself, the man kept giving us napkins and talking loudly about the birds, there were lots of people around as this place as crazy. There was at least 2 other people talking "at us" in Greek and we had no idea what they were saying. The man told Chelsea to help me and clean me off too. There was a man selling something on the corner who kept staring at me and almost yelling at me in Greek. Suddenly it felt like the people multiplied and it got even louder. Next thing I knew Chelsea took off running down into the metro and I realized my bag was gone. I didn't even know Chelsea took it off. And like that it all changed....
I sprinted through the train station with my 45 pound backpack and my pulled calf muscle that happened a few days before screaming "SOMEONE STOLE MY BAG" I had a cop then running with my up the escalator and back onto the other wide of the square. People were pointing and yelling yet the cop stopped and told me to wait. All I could think of was you stupid, lazy, good for nothing cop. I'm injured with an excessaive amount of extra weight and I could have easily kept going yet he was tired and so he stopped.....&*%^&^$%UIHJBBGFR$%#$#$. From there I tried to gather myself, headed for the police station to make a report and then it was off to the embassy for me.
Since then I haven't done much. Was saved by an amazing couch surfer named Giorgos who took us in for 2 nights and was so considerate. We had an amazing big soft bed with feather pillow and a feather douvet to lay in. I pretty much didnt move until the next evening to go get dinner.
After 2 nights there he send us onto another host named Digenis and have since been staying at his place. I've been back and fourth to the embassy, spending lots of time on email cancelling bank cards, phone contracts, visa account, trying to get new documents....what a nightmare!
I feel completly violated having my things ripped from me. I know they are just things and can be replaced but it just sucks BIG TIME. In that bag I had...My passport, my purse which had my wallet, bank cards, visa, drivers liscence, 300 euros cash and 50 pounds of cash, my i phone, ipod, my computer, my camera, my perscription glasses and many other little things that made travelling easier. I know it's stupid to have everything all in one place but that bag is ALWAYS attached to my body. I learned my lesson back in paris and if i ever had to put it down I made sure to put it around my leg or arm or what have you. Chelsea was trying to lend a helping hand that day and I just wish I saw her put it down or I would have held onto them. I have been killing myself with the "could have done, should have done" but I know it's useless time spent. I also had little things that just made life easier to travel....a lock to use in hostels, my travel pillow, my umbrella, a bunch of little souveniers from places and the bag itself....which is proving slightly difficult to find a one shoulder sling back that doesn't look easy to steal....
I'll write more later but for now this all I want to reflect back on that day.
I'm pretty depressed, I'm not sleeping well, I'm getting even more sick again and I know all of this is weighing on Chelsea who was travelling with me for fun....this isn't much fun so I would understand if she doesn't stick around. For the time being she's my life saver....taking care of me, loaning me money, just giving me someone to talk to. All the feelings going around are just hard to deal with.
UGH...tomorrow is another day....
I figured it would be better to find a Starbucks on my route to the airport rather then back tracking to the one we already knew so we headed in the general city center direction and got off at Omonia square. We walked around the circle twice trying to find one, asked a few locals when a nice man who was from Canada but now lives there pointed us inthe direction. Before leaving he told us to be careful.
So off we went around the corner and we should find it....nope.
We gave up, we were ready to head to the next main square so were walking back to the subway when something nasty splashed on our backs and sides. The man behind us started pointing up in the sky and saying it's the birds that pooped on us. Chelsea began to freak out.....I tried to tell her to nevermind and let just get to where we are going. A few steps around the corner we stopped to wipe it off. The man had napkins so we were thankful for something to wipe it off with. It all went so fast but I'll tell it how I remember it to be, Chelsea may have another story.
I just wanted to find food by this point so was trying to just get this all over with as fast as possible and move on. Chelsea was turning around trying to wipe stuff off herself, the man kept giving us napkins and talking loudly about the birds, there were lots of people around as this place as crazy. There was at least 2 other people talking "at us" in Greek and we had no idea what they were saying. The man told Chelsea to help me and clean me off too. There was a man selling something on the corner who kept staring at me and almost yelling at me in Greek. Suddenly it felt like the people multiplied and it got even louder. Next thing I knew Chelsea took off running down into the metro and I realized my bag was gone. I didn't even know Chelsea took it off. And like that it all changed....
I sprinted through the train station with my 45 pound backpack and my pulled calf muscle that happened a few days before screaming "SOMEONE STOLE MY BAG" I had a cop then running with my up the escalator and back onto the other wide of the square. People were pointing and yelling yet the cop stopped and told me to wait. All I could think of was you stupid, lazy, good for nothing cop. I'm injured with an excessaive amount of extra weight and I could have easily kept going yet he was tired and so he stopped.....&*%^&^$%UIHJBBGFR$%#$#$. From there I tried to gather myself, headed for the police station to make a report and then it was off to the embassy for me.
Since then I haven't done much. Was saved by an amazing couch surfer named Giorgos who took us in for 2 nights and was so considerate. We had an amazing big soft bed with feather pillow and a feather douvet to lay in. I pretty much didnt move until the next evening to go get dinner.
After 2 nights there he send us onto another host named Digenis and have since been staying at his place. I've been back and fourth to the embassy, spending lots of time on email cancelling bank cards, phone contracts, visa account, trying to get new documents....what a nightmare!
I feel completly violated having my things ripped from me. I know they are just things and can be replaced but it just sucks BIG TIME. In that bag I had...My passport, my purse which had my wallet, bank cards, visa, drivers liscence, 300 euros cash and 50 pounds of cash, my i phone, ipod, my computer, my camera, my perscription glasses and many other little things that made travelling easier. I know it's stupid to have everything all in one place but that bag is ALWAYS attached to my body. I learned my lesson back in paris and if i ever had to put it down I made sure to put it around my leg or arm or what have you. Chelsea was trying to lend a helping hand that day and I just wish I saw her put it down or I would have held onto them. I have been killing myself with the "could have done, should have done" but I know it's useless time spent. I also had little things that just made life easier to travel....a lock to use in hostels, my travel pillow, my umbrella, a bunch of little souveniers from places and the bag itself....which is proving slightly difficult to find a one shoulder sling back that doesn't look easy to steal....
I'll write more later but for now this all I want to reflect back on that day.
I'm pretty depressed, I'm not sleeping well, I'm getting even more sick again and I know all of this is weighing on Chelsea who was travelling with me for fun....this isn't much fun so I would understand if she doesn't stick around. For the time being she's my life saver....taking care of me, loaning me money, just giving me someone to talk to. All the feelings going around are just hard to deal with.
UGH...tomorrow is another day....
I don't like Athens...
We found our way to George's house, settled our things and then headed for coffee at Starbucks. From there we watched a movie, chatted and called it a night.
Although we wanted to get up early we decided not to set an alarm for a change and let our bodies wake up when they wanted to.....well that meant 11:30am!!! Half the day was gone. We got up and organised and think it was close to 1 before we got out of the house. We headed back to Starbucks to research our options, most of the places were closing at 3 so we just walked around and explored the city before finding dinner and returning back to Georges.
Day 3 in Athens we got up early and headed for the Acropolis. It was a perfect sunny day so we set out to explore. We were getting a hung of the metro lines and arrived in no time. I took a good hour to actually buy my ticket and head inside as I was having much too fun giving the stray dogs some love and basking in the sun with them. Eventualy we climbed way up to the top, stood where soo many people before us have, took many many pictures and breathed in the serenity that it The Acropolis. It's massive in size, beautiful in arcitechture and always neat to think what life must have been like back when it was built...
It was so nice to be way up above the city, standing on this huge mass of marble, it was so calming and a nice oasis away from the dirty smelly city.
I really don't like Athens. The people are rude, everyone looks dead...stone faced and numb, the city is very dirty, it's actually smells bad everywhere and over all it just sketches me out. People definatly don't rule the streets like in some places.....here everyone is in cars, theres soooo much smog in the sky and good luck finding a cross walk. Even when you do there's no telling for sure if the cars are actually going to stop. I've been honked at, hollared at...even the public bus driver shook his fist at me while I was crossing the crosswalk on a green crosswalk light while he was waiting to turn right. RUDE RUDE RUDE!!!!
I don't like Athens....
We had many places we wanted to see in Athens after the Acropolis but with it being so nice out we wanted to do that tomorrow and head for the beach.
We caught the subway as far out as it goes and asked some locals where to go. We ended up walking a ways but eventually found the ocean. It wasn't quite a beach but we could sit by the water and watch the sailboats pass by, smell the clean ocean air and watch the crazy parachute people with engines on their backs flying through the sky doing all kinds of stunts.
Would have been slightly more relaxing without that noise however being by the water we were in paradise. It was getting clear Chelsea and I needed an excape from the city.
Aftrer watching the sun set behind the mountain we made our back into town, found some dinner and back again to Georges. He had plans for the evening so we just had a night in.
This was my last night in Athens as I was off Cairo to visit Sara tomorrow and Chelsea was going to hang around this area.....but maybe more outside the city until I get back on the 21st.
Although we wanted to get up early we decided not to set an alarm for a change and let our bodies wake up when they wanted to.....well that meant 11:30am!!! Half the day was gone. We got up and organised and think it was close to 1 before we got out of the house. We headed back to Starbucks to research our options, most of the places were closing at 3 so we just walked around and explored the city before finding dinner and returning back to Georges.
Day 3 in Athens we got up early and headed for the Acropolis. It was a perfect sunny day so we set out to explore. We were getting a hung of the metro lines and arrived in no time. I took a good hour to actually buy my ticket and head inside as I was having much too fun giving the stray dogs some love and basking in the sun with them. Eventualy we climbed way up to the top, stood where soo many people before us have, took many many pictures and breathed in the serenity that it The Acropolis. It's massive in size, beautiful in arcitechture and always neat to think what life must have been like back when it was built...
It was so nice to be way up above the city, standing on this huge mass of marble, it was so calming and a nice oasis away from the dirty smelly city.
I really don't like Athens. The people are rude, everyone looks dead...stone faced and numb, the city is very dirty, it's actually smells bad everywhere and over all it just sketches me out. People definatly don't rule the streets like in some places.....here everyone is in cars, theres soooo much smog in the sky and good luck finding a cross walk. Even when you do there's no telling for sure if the cars are actually going to stop. I've been honked at, hollared at...even the public bus driver shook his fist at me while I was crossing the crosswalk on a green crosswalk light while he was waiting to turn right. RUDE RUDE RUDE!!!!
I don't like Athens....
We had many places we wanted to see in Athens after the Acropolis but with it being so nice out we wanted to do that tomorrow and head for the beach.
We caught the subway as far out as it goes and asked some locals where to go. We ended up walking a ways but eventually found the ocean. It wasn't quite a beach but we could sit by the water and watch the sailboats pass by, smell the clean ocean air and watch the crazy parachute people with engines on their backs flying through the sky doing all kinds of stunts.
Would have been slightly more relaxing without that noise however being by the water we were in paradise. It was getting clear Chelsea and I needed an excape from the city.
Aftrer watching the sun set behind the mountain we made our back into town, found some dinner and back again to Georges. He had plans for the evening so we just had a night in.
This was my last night in Athens as I was off Cairo to visit Sara tomorrow and Chelsea was going to hang around this area.....but maybe more outside the city until I get back on the 21st.
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Our alarms were set for 5:30 AM. Yawn! We had packed our things the night before so all we had to do was get ready and check a few details for couchsurfing online.
The Roman gods were roaring this morning and we woke up to pouring down rain, rattling thunder and crazy fork lightening that lit up the sky.
We checked out and got ready for our dash in the weather to head for our train.
We opened the door....and we ran. Instantly soaked and squealing from the thunder it was quite the weather experience this morning. Being that Chelsea and I are pretty positive people we giggled and San along the way. This was one for the story books!
We managed to sweep in, grab our tickets and jump on the train with about 2 minutes left to departure. Ahhhh we made it.
We were off to the airport and heading for Greece.
Waiting in line at the airport we saw part of the roof where it had collapsed and the rain was dropping through. The power kept flickering and we were starting to wonder if we'd be delayed. With no notices we lined up for our flight when they mentioned it would be delayed half hour boarding. Well an hour later we finally boarded and the plane and an hour and 40 mins later we were off. Due to my good skills of sleeping on public transport I was again out like a light before take off. Chelsea on the other hand is not so gifted so she doesn't always arrive at the new port as rested as I am.
Landing in Athens we gathered our things and hit the floor to search the public wifi. When your traveling free wifi hot spots become your best friends. We were sending out couch requests in hopes to find a place to stay and to our excitement someone replied. So with the directions he sent us we headed into the direction of downtown Athens to meet George, our host.
The Roman gods were roaring this morning and we woke up to pouring down rain, rattling thunder and crazy fork lightening that lit up the sky.
We checked out and got ready for our dash in the weather to head for our train.
We opened the door....and we ran. Instantly soaked and squealing from the thunder it was quite the weather experience this morning. Being that Chelsea and I are pretty positive people we giggled and San along the way. This was one for the story books!
We managed to sweep in, grab our tickets and jump on the train with about 2 minutes left to departure. Ahhhh we made it.
We were off to the airport and heading for Greece.
Waiting in line at the airport we saw part of the roof where it had collapsed and the rain was dropping through. The power kept flickering and we were starting to wonder if we'd be delayed. With no notices we lined up for our flight when they mentioned it would be delayed half hour boarding. Well an hour later we finally boarded and the plane and an hour and 40 mins later we were off. Due to my good skills of sleeping on public transport I was again out like a light before take off. Chelsea on the other hand is not so gifted so she doesn't always arrive at the new port as rested as I am.
Landing in Athens we gathered our things and hit the floor to search the public wifi. When your traveling free wifi hot spots become your best friends. We were sending out couch requests in hopes to find a place to stay and to our excitement someone replied. So with the directions he sent us we headed into the direction of downtown Athens to meet George, our host.
As much as we didn't feel like getting up early we set our alarms to get up and at er.
Rome wasn't built in a day but we set out to explore it in one! First destination was the Trevi fountain...figured if I came this far it was worth a short to throw my coin into the fountain in hope you'll make a quick return to Rome and find love along the way....I threw two coins haha.
We mingled through the many bustling tourists and onto our next sight to see. We past by many columns that stretched up to the sky. I'm not sure of the significance of all the columns but there must be one. We stood and stared at the Pantheon and I took pictures with the horses and carriages. I pretty much take pictures of every horse I see haha.
We strolled through old town and stood in awe of all the ruins. What a magnificent place Rome must have been back then and of course it still is.
Next we headed for the Colleseum. Just when we arrived the skies opened up and the gods poured down on us. Everyone ran for cover, the carriage drivers blanketed up their horses and umbrellas popped up in every direction. We ran for shelter against the Colleseum walls where we were approached by a man dressed like a Gladiator. We chatted him up until the rain settled down and we mentioned we were looking for a place to find lunch. He escorted us across the road to the restaurant as he was going the same way....not everyday you get escorted to lunch by a gladiator in Rome haha.
We had a wonderful salad with super service and I topped it off with the mother of all desserts....yummy.
After seeing many of the top sites on our list we walked around just taking it all in before heading ba k to the hostel for a relaxing night as we knew we'd be up early in the morning.
Rome wasn't built in a day but we set out to explore it in one! First destination was the Trevi fountain...figured if I came this far it was worth a short to throw my coin into the fountain in hope you'll make a quick return to Rome and find love along the way....I threw two coins haha.
We mingled through the many bustling tourists and onto our next sight to see. We past by many columns that stretched up to the sky. I'm not sure of the significance of all the columns but there must be one. We stood and stared at the Pantheon and I took pictures with the horses and carriages. I pretty much take pictures of every horse I see haha.
We strolled through old town and stood in awe of all the ruins. What a magnificent place Rome must have been back then and of course it still is.
Next we headed for the Colleseum. Just when we arrived the skies opened up and the gods poured down on us. Everyone ran for cover, the carriage drivers blanketed up their horses and umbrellas popped up in every direction. We ran for shelter against the Colleseum walls where we were approached by a man dressed like a Gladiator. We chatted him up until the rain settled down and we mentioned we were looking for a place to find lunch. He escorted us across the road to the restaurant as he was going the same way....not everyday you get escorted to lunch by a gladiator in Rome haha.
We had a wonderful salad with super service and I topped it off with the mother of all desserts....yummy.
After seeing many of the top sites on our list we walked around just taking it all in before heading ba k to the hostel for a relaxing night as we knew we'd be up early in the morning.
Ready, Set, Dash!
We got up, grabbed snacks and hit the train for what we knew was going to be a fast paced day. We hopped on the train to La Spezia where we'd find our next train to Pisa. We had an hour to wait and so we sat....guess it would have helped if we checked the train schedules last night when we had wifi...oops.
We caught our 2 hour train to Pisa and knew we only had about 2 and a half hours to get to the tower, take pics and get back for our train to Rome. So we found a place to store our luggage and we briskly marched in the direction of the tower. We joined the hundreds of other tourists in making the fun poses of pushing and holding up the tower. Once we were happy with our shots we dashed back for train with minutes to spare. And then we sat for our 4 hour train ride to Rome. Because of the lack of wifi we were winging a place to stay for tonight. We wrote down a few names of hostels and decided we'd start with The Yellow...known to be a cheap party hostel we thought it was a good start. SUCCESS! We found a bed. We were tired and ready to sit, we grabbed dinner at the hostel bar and delved into our computer before hitting the hay.
Sweet dreams world :)
We caught our 2 hour train to Pisa and knew we only had about 2 and a half hours to get to the tower, take pics and get back for our train to Rome. So we found a place to store our luggage and we briskly marched in the direction of the tower. We joined the hundreds of other tourists in making the fun poses of pushing and holding up the tower. Once we were happy with our shots we dashed back for train with minutes to spare. And then we sat for our 4 hour train ride to Rome. Because of the lack of wifi we were winging a place to stay for tonight. We wrote down a few names of hostels and decided we'd start with The Yellow...known to be a cheap party hostel we thought it was a good start. SUCCESS! We found a bed. We were tired and ready to sit, we grabbed dinner at the hostel bar and delved into our computer before hitting the hay.
Sweet dreams world :)
Great room, great view!
Ok well it's going to take me a bit to get caught up. I was outside wifi for awhile so had written 3 or 4 posts to upload later on my computer but 2 days ago all my things were stolen so no longer have my computer, posts or pictures..more about that later. For now I'll try to go back in time and recapture the words I wrote.
Day 2 in Cinque Terre we took our time climbing out of bed, showered, and headed for town. We picked up some fresh fruit for breakfast and headed for the train to Monterosso al Mare. Monterosso was also hit by the flash floods back in October but not nearly as bad as Vernazza. Vernazza was still evacuated so we were not able to visit there but only pass by on the train and see the devastation mother nature had caused the little village.
Arriving in Monterosoo we couldn't believe still what a mess the storm made and we were there a month after it happened. The streets and beach were still dirty, some doors were still sandbagged. Machinery lined the streets where they were digging, clearing debris and repairing.
Not many shoppes were open and the place was quiet. Still beautiful with all the destruction I can't even fathom how amazing this little seaside town is in all it's glory. We were getting hungry and without much open we decided to catch the train back to Cornelious.
We stepped off the train with our surprise to the village being WAY up on the hill side and so we began to climb. I always feel so out of shape when I hit the hills but appreciate the excessive!
The views from the top over the bright blue water were stunning and the fresh air filled our lungs made me feel alive. I just love this place was about the only thing that occupied my mind.
We took lots of photos and made the climb down the 300 and something stairs back to the station. We caught one more train back to Manarolawalked around and then made the trek back along the water into our little town of Riomaggiore. Turns out wifi was working again in the only little bar that has wifi so we sat and caught up online over a glass of wine. We were later joined by two men from China that shared a bottle of wine with us. One spoke good English the other spoke none so it was interesting and fun.
They ended up offering us some snacks so we sat and visited and exchanged stories about where'd we'd been, our countries and the many other topics travelers tend to cover.
We said goodbye to our new Chinese friends as we told the bartender we'd be back to visit. We hung out with him for awhile before calling it a night! Back to our great little room with a great little view :)
Day 2 in Cinque Terre we took our time climbing out of bed, showered, and headed for town. We picked up some fresh fruit for breakfast and headed for the train to Monterosso al Mare. Monterosso was also hit by the flash floods back in October but not nearly as bad as Vernazza. Vernazza was still evacuated so we were not able to visit there but only pass by on the train and see the devastation mother nature had caused the little village.
Arriving in Monterosoo we couldn't believe still what a mess the storm made and we were there a month after it happened. The streets and beach were still dirty, some doors were still sandbagged. Machinery lined the streets where they were digging, clearing debris and repairing.
Not many shoppes were open and the place was quiet. Still beautiful with all the destruction I can't even fathom how amazing this little seaside town is in all it's glory. We were getting hungry and without much open we decided to catch the train back to Cornelious.
We stepped off the train with our surprise to the village being WAY up on the hill side and so we began to climb. I always feel so out of shape when I hit the hills but appreciate the excessive!
The views from the top over the bright blue water were stunning and the fresh air filled our lungs made me feel alive. I just love this place was about the only thing that occupied my mind.
We took lots of photos and made the climb down the 300 and something stairs back to the station. We caught one more train back to Manarolawalked around and then made the trek back along the water into our little town of Riomaggiore. Turns out wifi was working again in the only little bar that has wifi so we sat and caught up online over a glass of wine. We were later joined by two men from China that shared a bottle of wine with us. One spoke good English the other spoke none so it was interesting and fun.
They ended up offering us some snacks so we sat and visited and exchanged stories about where'd we'd been, our countries and the many other topics travelers tend to cover.
We said goodbye to our new Chinese friends as we told the bartender we'd be back to visit. We hung out with him for awhile before calling it a night! Back to our great little room with a great little view :)
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Best place in the world....Cinque Terre
Tonight I am writing to you from one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. It’s a tropical area with little villages built on mountainous rocks towering over the bright blue Mediterranean ocean below…..a little place called Cinque Terre.
It was a place I wanted to visit before I started this trip, however back in October 2 of the 5 villages were hit pretty bad with a big storm and flooding causing water and 9 ft of mud to pour over their amazing little towns. So with that in mind I didn’t think it was a place I was going to get see this time around. After meeting a few people along the way that still went, Chelsea and I decided we were up to trying. We left Florence first thing this morning and bought the first train ticket to La Spezia
The game of finding a place to stay for current day you are on is a lot more fun with a partner in crime. So far it hasn’t been a feeling I’ve enjoyed on my own, but with company I have a slightly higher sense of adventure to live a little more on the edge ha-ha.
It really was no problem….3 minutes walk from the train station we hit the first hostel which the door was open but they appeared closed. After asking a local about it he sent us a few more meters up the hill where he said there was a place. Well BINGO….a woman was there to show me the room. Chelsea
We wasted no time sprucing up before jetting out to catch the sunset in this colorful little place.
We walked the seaside between Riomaggiore and Manorla which is about 100 ft up from the water and takes only 25 minutes on a beautiful rock pathway. During peak season they charge you 7 euro but this time of year it was free. It was lined with lovers catching the days last light, countless locks were hung from ever railing and overhead tree they could find to signify their love and that they were there <3 soooo cute!
We took numerous pictures and wandered around Manorola for a bit before dark and then headed home. We were on a missing to find dinner and have a “do nothing” kind of evening. We both could use the extra sleep time.
We took numerous pictures and wandered around Manorola for a bit before dark and then headed home. We were on a missing to find dinner and have a “do nothing” kind of evening. We both could use the extra sleep time.
We ate at a quaint little restaurant we luckily found still open as most were closed and no wifi to be found in sight.
I had my first taste of real Italian spaghetti and pesto and it was divine!
Sitting here writing this while Chelsea
I now know why people have said that Cinque Terre is one of their most favorite places on earth….pretty sure it’s going to be mine too!
We have decided to stay here for 2 nights and lose a night in Rome
Don’t worry we are taking pictures galore!!!
Ciao Bella!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Firenze = Florence
The Christmas markets are to die for and being female always helps haha. "Special price for you, for you today almost free" is what you hear alot of. "Beautiful smile....half price!" I think that was my favorite haha.
The scent of genuwine Italian leather makes me weak in the knees....not just missing the horses but that scent just reminds me of goodness. Trying to decide if I should cave in and indulge in my first leather jacket as there are so many choices, colors and styles.
The other night we went our with 2 couples from our hostel. Jumped around to a few different pubs mostly. Had some in depth conversations which always satisfy my soul.
On the way home we got ushers to go to this little side street where a crowd of Americans mostly were huddled around a door. The said door would open and close at random intervals taking orders one at a time. Now this is the interesting part.....it looked about as sketchy as a drug deal, people whispering to be quiet, keep it down ect.....all for a.....SECRET BAKERY!!!! They were selling delicious crossiants filled with Nutella for 1 euro and these things were flying off the shelves. Such a random thing but so funny, and sooooo good!!
We wandered back to our hostel and finally climbed into bed around 4 am....yawn.
We all slept in yesterday as a result. We woke up to a mostly sunny day though so wasted no time at all getting out into it. We went to Accedamia to get our first glimpse of Michelangelo's David....such a massive, triumphant statue. I had no idea he was so HUGE!
hen we wandered the streets, browsed the Christmas markets and headed for home. Chelsea is a super cook and we made a yummy chicken salad which is what we both had been craving for days. It was delicious!!!
We searched out plans for the next leg of our trip as we leave Florence tomorrow. It's been really nice to stay in one spot for 4 whole nights!!
It's an even nicer day today then yesterday so out we go!
TTFN
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Bedbugs=1, Shawna=0
Got up early this morning and said goodbye to The Museum....both good and shady experiences there. Staff were fun and entertaining and overall the building was pretty cool.. Downfalls.....not the cleanest joint or most well run and I have experienced bed bug bits because of it....GROSS. It's bound to happen when you travel as pretty much every hostel has had bedbugs at some point in time. I only have a few bites so I'm PRAYING they didn't get into my things....that will be awful if I transfer them. I was told to get peppermint oil as they don't like so I'm gonna be on that tomorrow like white on rice!
I was so excited to be heading to a new place, this time with Chelsea my travel buddy who decided to join me through the rest of Italy and into Greece. YAY!!! We navigated our way through the windy venice maze (with a thankyou to google maps) and actually made it on time to catch our train to Florence. It was the first time it was in the "cars" so there were 6 seats facing each other. Not alway easy to move around in that small of space with a backpack but once settled it was a good ride. As per my usual I was alseep within minutes of departure but was woken up as the sun hit my face through the window as we approached a town in between our two destionations. It was so nice to feel the warmth but we knew it would be short lived as the forecast for Florence was rain.
We arrived at the station and found a bus to our destination about 10 minutes away. The immediate beauty of Florence is stunning...even under the cover of raindrops.
With a little bit of map searching and spinning in circles we headed in a direction we were sure was the way....it was not. Lucikly not far off our path a nice Italian man who didnt speak a word on english, pointed us the right way and 15 minutes later we found our hostel. After ringing the bell to no avail we were super excited when the door swung open though it was just one of the other hostellers.....either way we were inside! We looked up....many many many flights of stairs and the packing questions came back into my head...1.Do you HAVE to have it? 2. Can you buy it in Europe? and 3 Are you willing to carry it uo 101 stairs......Well at this point I was ready to say goodbye to my backpack but I took a deep breath and started the climb....working off all the chocolate from Switzerland!!
We reached the very top of the stairs to find the door to our hostel with another damn bell.....that no one answered. Apparently we forget there was a lockout at this hostel. Anyway it was only about 30 minus before someone came to check us in so it wasn't too bad.
We took a few hours to just chill out as it had been awhile since we had done that. Then headed out for dinner and for our first real experience of Florence. The streets are all light up for Christmas and people are out and about. There is everything we could ever need close by which is super nice. Found a great little spot for dinner with HEALTHY food and walked around for a while.
On our way back we of course had to sample the gelato.....tonight I had coffee and triple choclate. Back in Venice I had creme caramel and some hazelnutty type one. I love gelato! The fresh kind anyway.
We returned for our hostel for a quiet night so we can both get some sleep and be ready for the next fun filled 3 days in Florence!
I had a glorious shower which made me feel slighty better after the bedbug episode though I can't stop scratching just at the thought of bugs being in my things....ick ick ick.
Operation peppermint oil....here I come!!!
I was so excited to be heading to a new place, this time with Chelsea my travel buddy who decided to join me through the rest of Italy and into Greece. YAY!!! We navigated our way through the windy venice maze (with a thankyou to google maps) and actually made it on time to catch our train to Florence. It was the first time it was in the "cars" so there were 6 seats facing each other. Not alway easy to move around in that small of space with a backpack but once settled it was a good ride. As per my usual I was alseep within minutes of departure but was woken up as the sun hit my face through the window as we approached a town in between our two destionations. It was so nice to feel the warmth but we knew it would be short lived as the forecast for Florence was rain.
We arrived at the station and found a bus to our destination about 10 minutes away. The immediate beauty of Florence is stunning...even under the cover of raindrops.
With a little bit of map searching and spinning in circles we headed in a direction we were sure was the way....it was not. Lucikly not far off our path a nice Italian man who didnt speak a word on english, pointed us the right way and 15 minutes later we found our hostel. After ringing the bell to no avail we were super excited when the door swung open though it was just one of the other hostellers.....either way we were inside! We looked up....many many many flights of stairs and the packing questions came back into my head...1.Do you HAVE to have it? 2. Can you buy it in Europe? and 3 Are you willing to carry it uo 101 stairs......Well at this point I was ready to say goodbye to my backpack but I took a deep breath and started the climb....working off all the chocolate from Switzerland!!
We reached the very top of the stairs to find the door to our hostel with another damn bell.....that no one answered. Apparently we forget there was a lockout at this hostel. Anyway it was only about 30 minus before someone came to check us in so it wasn't too bad.
We took a few hours to just chill out as it had been awhile since we had done that. Then headed out for dinner and for our first real experience of Florence. The streets are all light up for Christmas and people are out and about. There is everything we could ever need close by which is super nice. Found a great little spot for dinner with HEALTHY food and walked around for a while.
On our way back we of course had to sample the gelato.....tonight I had coffee and triple choclate. Back in Venice I had creme caramel and some hazelnutty type one. I love gelato! The fresh kind anyway.
We returned for our hostel for a quiet night so we can both get some sleep and be ready for the next fun filled 3 days in Florence!
I had a glorious shower which made me feel slighty better after the bedbug episode though I can't stop scratching just at the thought of bugs being in my things....ick ick ick.
Operation peppermint oil....here I come!!!
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Helllo Italy - Venezia :)
Well I wrote a HUGE post the other day and when I was finished I went to spell check it and somehow managed to delete the whole thing so I was mad grrrrr.
I won't go into as much detail as I did before as so much has happened! For now I'll give you the gist of it.
I was in Interlaken Switzerland and went hiking in the Swiss Alps....Beautiful!
I caught the train to Venice, Italy and was very proud for having 2 changes onto 3 different trains over 7 hours and I made them all ON TIME and in the right direction! YAY me.
I arrived in Venice and went out the first night with the crew from the hostel. Good times.
My first full day here Chelsea one of the girls from the hostel and I explored this amazing city.
It's like one giant maze where dead ends end at water. Maps don't help as the roads don't make any scence and when it looks like your going straight your not haha.
I love the italian language and could listen to it all day!
I ate my first Italian pizza and a few different kinds of gelato....yummmm.
It rained today so wasn't as nice to walk around all day but we did it anyway....hmm wet feet are probablly not the best thing for my cold that seems to be taking a vengence over me....ugh.
That's about as creative as I get tonight as I'm getting pretty sleepy. Had a big yummy dinner at the hostel for 5 euros with everyone thats staying here and we got into the wine....it is cheaper then water here you know....
I will write better next time I promise...after I stop being mad for losing my amazingly written post haha.
Ciao Ciao!
I won't go into as much detail as I did before as so much has happened! For now I'll give you the gist of it.
I was in Interlaken Switzerland and went hiking in the Swiss Alps....Beautiful!
I caught the train to Venice, Italy and was very proud for having 2 changes onto 3 different trains over 7 hours and I made them all ON TIME and in the right direction! YAY me.
My first full day here Chelsea one of the girls from the hostel and I explored this amazing city.
It's like one giant maze where dead ends end at water. Maps don't help as the roads don't make any scence and when it looks like your going straight your not haha.
I love the italian language and could listen to it all day!
I ate my first Italian pizza and a few different kinds of gelato....yummmm.
It rained today so wasn't as nice to walk around all day but we did it anyway....hmm wet feet are probablly not the best thing for my cold that seems to be taking a vengence over me....ugh.
That's about as creative as I get tonight as I'm getting pretty sleepy. Had a big yummy dinner at the hostel for 5 euros with everyone thats staying here and we got into the wine....it is cheaper then water here you know....
I will write better next time I promise...after I stop being mad for losing my amazingly written post haha.
Ciao Ciao!
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