Go the Chiefs!

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Why are all our flights at such stupid times? Once more we were up before dawn to get a flight, this time from Rhodes to Athens. We left too early to wake the rest of the family up and watched the sun rise as we drove up the east coast of Rhodes. When we checked in we realised that the plane was going on to Rome. We were booked on an afternoon flight to Rome and so we asked if we could fly straight through. It wasn't to be but they did take our luggage the whole way through and we didn't have to pick it up again in Athens. It did mean we still had a whole day in Athens. Harriet wasn't keen on going back because of the scare on the last night we were there, but it was a choice between the city or the airport.

The bus into the city is cheap efficient and reliable, so we jumped on board and slept the whole way to Sintagma Square. We were very early and so many shops were only just beginning to open , but we found a breakfast cafe in Plaka. The cafe also had wifi and Fiona was able to keep on top of the scores in the super rugby final. Although not as good as watching it, at least we knew who was winning - the right team!

We felt like we had seen all we wanted to see in Athens, but to make sure we got on a little train that goes around all the sights. The ride takes about 45 minutes and you can get on and off at various points around the city. The ride confirmed that we had indeed seen as much as we wanted so we headed towards the shops and spent an hour or so in and out of blissful aircon. There was also a stop for frozen yoghurt and time for Toby to get a haircut.

The streets were full of policemen. In one day we must have seen more police than we have cumulatively seen in the seven years we have lived in Australia. We were sure something must have been happening but didn't see any unrest or activity by the police. It was unnerving for Harriet, who was getting a little worried that we would be caught up in more trouble, but her fears were unfounded.

We flew into Rome and had to find a specific bus stop to get the shuttle to the car hire place. We were shocked by how rude some people are when another couple who were also taking the shuttle put their luggage in the boot in such a way that there was no room for anyone else's. Then they sat in the seats in front so that we couldn't get in the minibus. They must have been really jet lagged or stupid/rude.

The drive to Montone where we are staying seemed to take forever. Toby did really well getting used to driving on the wrong side of the road and changing gears with the wrong hand. We had let our host, Aine (pronounced Awn-ya - it's Irish) know that we would be late and she messaged to let us know she would meet us so we could follow her back to the property. We were glad she did because although the directions were great it was very dark and there were no lights or signs. We were looking forward to seeing what it looks like in the daytime.

The villa is split into accommodation for 3 parties, plus the main house where Aine and her family live. We have rented La Torretta, which means the tower. It is a 2 storey apartment with one bedroom and a bathroom upstairs and a living area downstairs. Harriet has the sofa bed again. The view out of our window is over the village of Montone, a medieval walled village at the top of the hill. We think we are going to like it here, which is good news as it is home for the next three weeks!

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