Hello Hello,
Greetings from my post-paper state! I must say, there is something absolutely freeing about being paper-free, even compared to vacation, when my South Asian Dev. paper loomed over me even when I was enjoying the coastline of Santorini.
Anyway, so Greece. 12.5 days in Greece: Athens, Santorini, Heraklion and Rethymnon in Crete. Well, the first sign that Greece is a funny country: no immigration. Nope, I don't have a stamp in my passpost, showing I went to Greece. I do however have two stamps from Switzerland, Zurich and Geneva, which were my layovers. So I guess what Greece fails in immigration within the EU, Switzerland makes up for in immigration checks during layovers. Anyway, Athens. The good side of Athens is that public transportation is so cheap (1 Euro for 90 mins of all modes of travel), but the bad side is that you can literally walk the all significant lengths of Athens within two hours, look at the old piles of rocks, and then have a gyros for lunch. The gyros isn't part of the bad side. So Athens was a one-day affair. Oh lovely thing, since I'm an student in the UK, meaning I have a EU student card, free admissions to about 90% of Greek cultural historical sites. Awesome. So, I walked into the Acropolis like I owned the place...
Ugh, I still miss Stella and George from Santorini. The hotel owners who were possibly the kindest people I have ever met. We also met Sophocles, a Greek who works at the volcano tourist site, claiming to have been sober for two years but was hungover for work the day we met him (?) and made ominous jokes of his past raping young girls... Ran into him twice; don't need to be more acquainted than that. Oh, Christina dragged me on a hike! (with less enthusiasm than an exclamation point) A 3 hour hike that had the option of taking a 1.40 Euro bus for 20 mins to arrive at your destination. I am not one to complain about nature or hiking, but those two options clearly weigh toward one side: the bus. George gave us a red-dyed egg for Easter, which in Greek tradition, you are to have a egg smash-off on both ends, and the one without any indented ends has good luck for the year. So Round 1 and 2 in Christina versus Sarena, guess who won... Me, of course. George then cackled from his belly.... Oh Santorini, those were some pleasant days.
Easter Sunday in Santorini. Red Eggs for All!
Onto the unpleasant. The 2 hour ferry ride from Santorini to Heraklion, Crete. More like a rollercoaster ride. At one point, there was literally a choir of people puking, while the ferry attendant wavered back and forth, up and down the aisle to pass out puke bags. By the end of hour two, yes I was sea-sick, not at the verge of puking, but I did start tearing up just because the ride, hearing and seeing people puke while wanting to myself, was so horrible. We arrived to Crete to see what... old ruins and old people. I felt that I was a bit ahead of myself in terms of travelling. As in, Crete is reserved for 60+ years old couples, wearing khaki visors, lanyards, and carrying a Frommer's Greece/Crete. Yes, Frommer's is the indicator. Old people. Five days, never spent it so inactively...
Crete: Old Rocks, Old People
Overall, my recommendation is Greece is a week. Save Crete for over sixty and in a dependent relationship. Athens, Santorini, and throw in a Mykonos, and you'll have enough seasickness, gyros eaten, and bogatsas (cream pies) savored to last you a while.
Songs Playing: 500 Days of Summer Soundtrack
Location: Norwich, England.
