Tag 17 bis 24, 5.250 km von Galway Rumaenien! Wir waren kaum ueber die Grenze gefahren, da merkten wir schon: Das Land hat was! Ein Eindruck, der sich spaeter bestaetigen sollte! Unser erster Stop sollte in Transilvanien, genau genommen in Sighisoara sein (der Deutsche Name fuer die Stadt ist Schaessburg, aber dazu spaeter mehr). Auf dem Weg fuhren wir durch unzaehlige Doerfchen, wo ueberall schwer was los war. Je weiter wir ins Landesinnere fuhren, desto mehr. Bald sah man mehr Pferdefuhrwerke als Autos. Und wenn Autos, dann meistens ziemlich alte. Trabis, Ladas, Dacias sowieso. Wir fuehlten uns, als haetten wir eine [View Full Entry]

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On Greek roads. Arrived in Vergina, tomorrow we do the tourist stuff, the tomb of Phillip. More on this later, from Hilary. Greek roads. The Greeks seem to build roadside shrines at places people get killed in accidents, so it goes without saying that Shrines per Kilometer is a good indication of how dangerous the road is. After Vergina we head for Igoumenitsa, maybe in one day, maybe two. The Greeks are building an EU standard highway between Thessalonika and Igoumenitsa, but it is only complete in places, credit where due, the terrain is not easy. Anyway on EU standard highways [View Full Entry]

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Yesterday we left Delphi, heading north. The mountain roads were pretty spectacular before we dropped down to the Agean coast. We stopped north of Larissa, a small seaside place called Platamonas, It is overlooked by Mount Olympos, seems to cater to Greek tourists and day trippers from Larissa and Thessalonika. Finding a hotel was no problem. The trip itself was good, if hot. Jackets and helmets were not an attractive proposition. The first part, the pass, was spectacular though Ashley had to concentrate on the hairpin bends and other drivers. It was ten good roads (including some stretches of two lane [View Full Entry]

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So this is our last full day in Greece. We've been in Thessaloniki for about three or four days now, just waiting for our train. It's winding me up like a spring, and tomorrow I'm going to spring north into the Balkans. So here I am getting some Internet done, soothing my headache with some Dead Kennedys. Bad idea? Tomorrow we're going to catch a train to Sofia, in Bulgaria, and spend like two days there before heading southwest to Croatia. It'll be good to be in another country, another region, I'm totally ready for another culture. I'll probably buy a [View Full Entry]

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Well, another week without affordable internet resources, another week-long break between entries, and again I have a lot of catching up to do. SO, shortly after my last entry we boarded a ferry for Patmos and arrived late at night. We were picked up at the port by Theo, the owner of Yvonne's studios, the place where we'd reside for the next four nights. We were pleasantly surprised to find a kitchenette with a stovetop and sink and some counter space. We had a great view from our balcony; on our left the tourist-town of Skala, which is situated on the [View Full Entry]

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On Tuesday I headed out to Vergina. Lonely Planet claims you can do Pella and Vergina in one day, and perhaps you can, but you would need to get an early start and have a copy of the bus timetables. I had neither. I headed off to the bus station, bought a ticket and went to find the bus. Looking for bus number 9, I was unable to find it. Then a helpful fellow told me that 9 was, in fact, my seat number. After asking a couple more people, I found my bus; we boarded and headed out to Veria. [View Full Entry]

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Here I am in Thessaloniki, Greece. The flight went well. I watched Charlie Wilson’s War (great film, despite starring Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. Tom Hanks is one of those actors though - you may not like him, but some of his films are fantastic) and Jumpers (very ordinary, which was not a surprise as it starred the young Darth Vader, whatever his name is) plus a whole bunch of doco’s. Tried to get some sleep, but just as I dozed off I seemed to always be awakened by someone walking past and kicking me, or the guy next to me [View Full Entry]

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April 4 - 5 Friday April 4 After a great breakfast, provided by our hotel, Kia, James, and I ventured out into the rain that was coming down on Thessaloniki. We made out way to the Archaeological Museum and spent some time there looking at the statues and jewelery. The jewelery was so amazing and intricate. And the fact that it had survived for thousands of years was unbelievable. Of course, we had problems reading the signs as they were all in Greek, and Greek not only is a foreign language but uses a totally different alphabet. This could make anything [View Full Entry]

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{A little background before I start this one. My Grandpa (Dad’s dad) is from northern Greece near Thessaloniki. Around 10 years ago we got a letter from one of his cousins trying to make contact with us. When I decided to go to Greece for spring break my parents dug out the letters and looked up the name to see if we could get a hold of them so I could meet them. After a few weeks we got an email back, and they wanted me to come and visit. Eleni is my dad’s cousin and she is married to George. [View Full Entry]

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My last day in Thessaloniki was spent with the family. We had a lazy morning and then went to meet Eleni's other sister Alexandra and her husband Gregory. Alexandra was exactly what I imagined a Greek Aunt would be like. We met them in a parking lot of a grogery store so we could follow them to the restaurant where we were going to have lunch. As we drove up, Alexandra had her cane raised above her head waving it at us. We pulled up and she opened the door and grabbed me gave me kisses and almost suffocated me in [View Full Entry]

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