After the trip from Athens which lasted all day we had a good night of rest at the Vesta hotel. The day before when we arrived it was very very hot in SP but our first day sightseeing was a mix between warm and cold. We did need our jumpers. After breakfast we were greeted by Svetlana, also from the Trans Siberian group, for a three-hour walking tour of the city. Svetlana is a very charming Russian girl who spoke English with an Australian accent and is very proud of her city. She also had with her the train tickets for the St Petersburg-Moscow leg of our journey. More on that later but we were very excited to have them. She advised us on some safety precautions which did not amount to anything more than the ... read more

The Economy Hotel where we stayed is a quite nice budget hotel, situated downtown, very close to the town hall. There is just one rule to observe: don't go in any of the small streets at the back. During the day you might simply be frightened, during the night, well we didn't try... Athens is too well known for us to comment here about the beauty of the Acropolis, the magnificence of the Archaeological museum or the quietness of the Agora. Suffice to say that we enjoyed it all very much. A few pictures will help testify our enthusiasm. What was especially nice is that we spent some time with our friend Panos. On Saturday night he brought us to places where few tourists go. Psiris, that's how the area is called, is absolutely packed with ... read more

We managed to get out of bed early enough so we could leave early. Around 8.30 we left Delphi. We made our way to Arachova where the climb of the Parnassos started. The higher we got the happier we were with the views. If I remember correctly the highest peak of the Parnassos is 2440 m. The other side of the mountain as we went down was as beautiful. we crossed several villages and some ski resorts. I suppose it gets really busy in the winter. It took about 3 and a half hours to reach Kalambaka/Meteora. It was difficult to find the hotel so we stopped at a petrol station to ask for information. The guy at the counter could not be more helpful. He checked on the internet and phoned the hotel for us. ... read more

We had a great time in Istanbul. A good way to start a trip to Asia, through its front door. We did try to get as much info as possible on how to get out of the airport quickly so we could make the most of our three days. It didn't quite help! After getting into wrong queues, having to go back and join a long long queue to get a visa, we were ready to find the shuttle from the hotel. What we found were hundreds of people holding signs with names on it. Some holding lists of names. It took some time but eventually we made our way out of the airport and shared the van with Gustavo and Merite, an Argentinian couple who were on the same flight and staying also at our ... read more

Hey, just to share a bit of nerves with you all. I cannot stop rearranging the luggage and removing things. I will end up with nothing I guess. Ben has done his bag once and that was it. I am still trying to share the weight of the guidebooks though. Our essentials are Imodium and hand gel, and chocolate. Anyway, since the end of March we have been saying goodbye to our friends and family. We are now looking forward to sharing this experience with you all in here and when we come back. Pity we did not have the camera with us all the time but here are a few of friends we have said good bye to. We update you next from the Bosphorus.... read more