Mainland Greece pt.II: Chalkida; Trikala; Meteora; and Nafpaktos

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Back to Athens........

From Santorini, we returned to Athens and the Hotel Ionis for one night of rest before our mainland road-trip.

While M&M found the steam to venture out to the Psiri district and hear some 'bouszouki' music until the wee-hours, We stayed in and watched 'Pretty Woman' and 'Carlito's Way.'

After learning of M&M's late-nite adventures over breakfast we checked out of the hotel and into our new rental car. It was supposed to be a Volvo, but we ended up with a European manufactured Ford sedan, the Mondeo.

We packed the trunk with all of our luggage and headed out of the city towards the giant port of Pireaus. Although Pireaus is not very far from Athens, it does have it's own very distinct personality.

An old port city, Pireaus has been around for a long, long time. The people there are uniquely pirate-like; at least from what we could see from the car. There are also some very chic 'hoods around the bend from the main shipping harbor. Remember, many of the very rich Greeks made their fortune in shipping.

We got to see all of this because we were, once again, very lost. Even with maps, there were very few street signs to be found, and we were treated to a nice, yet exasperating, tour of Pireaus. With Mau driving and Holden navigating it took the four of us an hour to get out of the area - and then we were lost again!

Getting on the correct freeway ramp was a trial - and just as we were thinking we had found our way out of the woods. Alas, we took the wrong one. So, after exiting the freeway and scouring some more side streets, we found ourselves headed in the right direction - finally!

Our first destination outside of Athens was the temple of Poseiden on the south tip of the mainland; a region named Attica. Driving past some of the Olympic complexes and further past some ritzy satellite beach communities, we finally found open road bordering the sea.

Driving great winding roads, we passed windsurfurers braving the cold ocean to benefit from the windy swells. We couldn't really detect any speed limits either. Thus, an hour after being totally lost, we were found.

The Temple of Poseiden is a monument to the Greek God of the Sea near the village of Sounion. Very old and withered, the monument is still something to see mostly for it's location.

Perched above the sea on a mindswept peninsula the temple was a treat to see. Very windy, but very picturesque.

Like most monuments, you can't walk inside and among the great pillars for fear of destruction. Unique to this temple though is the fact that before such restrictions were in place, many people in the past have vandalized the ruins by writing their name - the writer, Lord Byron, being the first. Although we didn't see his tag, we did see many names with dates from the 19th century.

After spending an hour there, and watching some other tourist trip and fall face-first in the rubble, we decided to strike out and find some lunch. After all, it was 3pm.

For lunch, we found ourselves in a small town around the cape from the temple. The staff could not speak English so we had to try our luck with the Greek menu. Needless to say, we were missing Tino from the 'Posidin' that day at lunch, after visiting the Temple of Poseidin......yuk,yuk, yuk!

After lunch, we high-tailed it back through the other side of Athens, up the National toll-road, to a town called Chalkida (pronounced Hall-key-duh).

Once there....guess what happened? We got lost again!!

At this point, Holden became quite consternated with his navigating problems. Let's just say that our location proved to be more than a couple of blocks from where Holden thought we were. After entering the town on the bridge and circling near enough to the hotel to call for a drink, we found ourselves a couple of miles away via one way streets.

The streets weren't the only problem. When asking Greeks if they speak English, they would invariably say 'yes', but then go on to rapidly call out all sorts of directions in Greek!?!? Go figure.

After an hour lost, we found our way by the hotel, but with no place to park. So, we circled again and squeezed into the tiny underground parking lot. Whatever the hotel cost, it didn't matter. at that point - 9pm - we all needed out of the car and a room to relax in - and a stiff drink!

After drinks we had dinner. It was the first non-Greek/Continental meal we had had in some time. Pasta for some and lobster thermador for Holden. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either.

That night, Holden took a stroll across the brifge to take some evening pictures of the channel. Chalkida is a Athenian resort destination that lies on an island to the East of the mainland peninsula. At one point the channel separating the two lands is only 30 feet wide, and that is where the bridge was.

That was it for that night.

The next morning it was time to eat and hit the road again. Beforehand, holden had searched out his now-favorite english newspaper, The International Herald Tribune. It contains great news, sports and business from around the world; but it was most desirable for the crossword and jumble.

At this point, getting in the car and driving meant getting lost. The plan for the day was to visit some local ruins and then head North towards Meteora. We were searching for the Omfairion ruins, renowned for the healing powers of the springs that were bestowed by the Greek gods.

Without the proper scrutiny of our guide book we headed to the town of Omfairion on the assumption that the temple would be nearby. No dice!!

Although the town shared the same name, the actual site of the ruins was some 30km away - back up the mountain roads and down into another valley. And even then, when we were on the right course, it took luck in choosing which side road to follow to find the ruins.

After an hour and a half in the car we finally found it - and it was worth it. we paid the admission and hiked around the area for a couple of hours. We even tossed coins into one of the still wells for good health.

At least the second part of the drive that day was more straightforward. Get back on the highway and drive. And drive we did. After a quick drive through the mythical town of Thebes - which looks more like a poor Mexican village - we decided to grab a quick lunch at a roadside stop and just drive.

It was time for Holden to drive and Mau to navigate. In the spirit of our wayward adventure, Mau decided to try and find some more ruins on the map. We never found them and quickly returned to the road.

Now, everyone knows that driving in foreign countries can get crazy quick. Greece is way up there! People drive on the shoulder to let others pass with greater ease; even on the freeway. There are a few slow cars and slower trucks, with the rest just speeding by at 180km/hour.

It was a highlight to get to drive off and on during the trip, but it was also quite a test of nerves. It didn't help that Greece is said to have the highest roadside fatality rate per capita in Europe. Actually it is third, behind Lithuania and Latvia!

This sad fact became apparent the further we got out of the metropolitan area of Athens, with countless roadside memorials - most resembling Orthodox churches - dotting the sides of the roads. Very sad and striking indeed. We had a name for them when we saw them, but it was a moot point to call them out. Every time you passed one, another was waiting just ahead. Sad!

So we steamed ahead Northbound, into the sunset. We passed the hot springs of Thermopolae, the site of an ancient battle. After leaving a city and passing a large roadside gypsy camp, we started our ascent into the hills that would take us over a pass and into the valley we were planning on reaching.

The Volvo would have been nice for the hilly climbs we had to make that week. The Ford simply had no torque and really lagged up those hills. Oh well.

After crossing the pass we descended into a valley that looked like.....'Wait a minute! What's that?'

Ahead lay a giant sea of clouds covering the entire valley and creeping up into the hills. Quite a sight, and with the light of dusk we pulled over to take some pictures. Reminiscent of when the fog engulfs the Bay Area, and pretty amazing.

As we drove down into the mist visability became a problem. Not for too long, though. We hit the valley floor and drove straight through the farmland to Trikala.

Entering Trikala the thick mist set in again at ground level and an eerie feeling resulted. The city is not a big one, but the streets were jam-packed. After spotting the hotel we had to circle the one-way roads three times: Once to drop off Mau to get a room; the next to drop the women off with the luggage; and finally to circle around to the parking lot.

The parking lot was a crowded mess as well. Holden was forced to ignore the honking cars behind him while the attendants opened the gate, and then squeeze the sedan through two cars by only inches into a tiny parking spot that was difficult to get out of. All in a day's work.

The hotel Aechellion was alright. Our balcony over looked the riverside promenade, with holiday lights and statues obscured by the thick mist.

For dinner, we went to a restaurant the hostess at the hotel had recommended. At 9:45pm we were one of two tables. But, by the time we finished the place was full to capacity. Pretty good food as well.

The next morning we spent quite some time finding an ATM and checking out of the hotel. We drove through the old-town area to see the fortress of days gone by. Afterwards we departed Trikala. Next stop, Meteora.

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Meteora lay only 40km North and it was an easy drive. For one day, we didn't find ourselves lost. That would have been hard, being that we could see the massive 300 meter rock formations from the moment we left Trikala.

Let us explain. Meteora is a geographical wonder of gigantic stone formations. Not to mention the
fact that ancient monks-turned-hermits erected numerous monasteries atop these rocks. Hard to explain the impression it forces upon a viewer - hope the pictures do them justice.

Anyways, we drove through the small-resort town of Meteora trying to find a hotel which looked suitable. Before we knew it, we had circled around the town - and the rocks - up into the hills. Once there, it was picture time.

Our trip to Greece had not included this destination originally, but Meteora might be the greatest place we saw in Greece. We drove up in the hills, all around the monasteries, and back into the city - forming a big loop in the process.

On the way we were forced to stop by a shepherd and his flock of goats. For all the stereotypes of Greeks and goats, this was the first instance even resembling such a generlization.

Back into town, we checked in the chic hotel Divanis. Before even unpacking we were back in the car to return to the hills and take pictures while the light was good. We could not pass up that opportunity - even for a much needed lunch break.

In the hills, we stopped at several of the monasteries and even hiked out onto the rocks and into some perilous positions. Those who are scared of heights need not apply. It's a long, long way down. But, these vistas provided the best views of the monasteries and the town below.

After taking as many photos as we could, we needed to search out soem place for lunch. Once again, we went back into town and found a great little pizza joint for lunch.

Following that we finally checked into our rooms and rested for a while before venturing out for dinner. Dinner was nothing special, but not bad.

Walking back to the hotel we all remarked at the number of bars which were populated only by men. This is the case all over Greece and the situation is this: the men go out while the women do all the work at home. The men socialize, drink, gamble and, of course, smoke a lot of cigarettes. The 'men's clubs' are a true Grecian phenomena.

Upon returning to the hotel we grabbed a quick drink at the bar. There, our waitress explained both the afore mentioned truism of the 'men's clubs' and the fact that there were two fugitives on the loose in the area - in other words: don't pick up any hitchikers.

The next day, new year's eve, we checked out and drove out of Meteora, en route to the coastal town of Nafpaktos.

To get there we had to cross over a snowy mountainous pass. Who knew they has such contour in Greece. At one point in the pass we experienced a 'white-out' with zero visabiltiy, due to the snow and wind. We survived that.

Following that we reached a checkpoint, with heavily armed military personnel. They were looking for the fugitives!

Piecing together the story we learned that the escapees had killed two police officers during transfer to another locale, and were on the loose in the immediate area.

The guard stopped us, looked in the car, and asked only Holden to show his passport. UZI in hand he inspected the document and let us pass.

As we desecended from the mountain pass, the snow dissapated but the road conditions worsened. With major construction on a new tollway in progress, the road was in ill repair, and very slippery. One vehicle ahead of us almost skidded off a cliff around a bend. It was time to be very careful.

We drove down further towards the sea and through the big college town of Ioannina. Later on we had lunch and then drove out to the coast and on into the dark towards Nafpaktos.

With Holden driving the windy coastal roads, through cities and counties, there came certain times where the other drivers were negotiating some pretty hairy passes. Once, in the dark, a car came speeding from behind only to squeak into the right lane ahead of us just before a narrow bridge and oncoming traffic. That was a close one for sure.

We did reach our destination in one piece. After that day driving, even if it was New Year's Eve, we decided to grab some drinks and just relax - forget the nightlife.

So New Year's came and went; in a sports bar and then the hotel lobby.

The next day was all about rest - or at least it was supposed to be. Directly after eating lunch, Julia had a coughing fit which severely strained her chest and caused her quite a bit of pain. She needed help.

It proved extremely helpful that the hotel manager spoke good English. He lead us to the local health clinic, which then referred us to the main hospital accross the water.

On the other side of the channel is the great Pelopenese Island. We had discussed doing some sightseeing there, but not visiting the hospital. Alas, that is just where we were headed.

And so we went. We crossed a magnificent new bridge over the straight - one which cost 10 Euros each way. At night the bridge is really something, but this was serious so we had little time to admire it.

Thus begins the saga of our Greek hospital visit. Remember, it was New Year's day. Regardless the emergency room was packed. Julia underwent examinations, bloodwork, and finally x-rays. Although she had recovered well from her earlier bout with 'walking pneumonia' the coughing had persisted and had caused great pain.

While waiting for the results, we were privy to a fight between a drunk and an agressive man whom the drunk must have offended. Pretty tense situation in the waiting room - tense to the point of comedy. That affair disolved as quickly as it began, and we were still waiting.

Our doctor finally appeared and said there wasn't anyhting critically wrong. She gave us a prescription and said goodbye.....

......And we didn't have to pay for anything! The cost of visiting a public hosptial was only time and some iffy bloodwork done by the nurses. otherwise it was free - Imagine that! We even got to keep the x-rays for a mimento.

Except for some frayed nerves and Julia's bruised veins we managed to leave in one piece, and not any poorer. The sole cost of that visit was the huge toll for the bridge.

So we returned to Nafpaktos for dinner and then retired for the night. Then next day we were on our way to the more-than-famous ruins at Delphi.

We'll leave that for the next blog. This one's been long enough. Peace!

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