Opa! Stolen Blog....thanks Kels

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Turns out I haven’t written in my blog for over a month…partly because we haven’t had good access to internet and partly because I am lazy and would rather suntan on the beach - I won’t lie. So, due again to my laziness, I copied most of Kelsey’s blog and am going to post it as my own. I am officially giving credit to her……here it goes:

Kelsey and I spent a lot of time over in Transylvania, enjoying the beautiful countryside and amazing castles oozing with history. We visited the castle in Sinaia, called Pelis, where the first king and queen of Romania lived and were able to walk through and see the amazing architecture and elaborate decoration, with so much intricate wood carvings that is was too overwhelming to take all in. We learned the history of Vlad Tepes, the Transylvanian ruler behind the Dracula legend, and the real story behind his legacy...surprisingly it has nothing to do with vampires at all, but definitely lots of blood and torture.

From Romania, we took a train south into Bulgaria, to the capital Sofia, where we were once again faced with the Cyrillic alphabet and having to navigate a city with limited English and roman lettering on signs etc. To top it off they nod their head to say no and shake their head to yes…needless to say it got very confusing at times. We visited the Rila Monestary that is situated two hours out of Sofia in the mountains, and it was amazing...it was built in secret during a time when Christianity was banned in Bulgaria and is located in this hidden valley. It was in the middle of nowhere, and was extremely peaceful...it is still in use today, and you can watch the monks walking around, going about their daily tasks. The church there was stunning, covered top to bottom with colourful frescos and gold. We stayed at an awesome hostel that included breakfast AND a spaghetti dinner, needless to say we took advantage of that.

From Sofia we headed south to Greece, the 11th country we have been to during our trip. We stopped first in Thessaloniki in the north and then to Athens. I was hit with food poisoning, which took me out of action for a few days, so unfortunately we weren't able to see a lot in Athens. We are planning to spend a few days there on the way home to see the sights before we fly out...We spent Canada Day in Delphi with some friends we met back in Sofia, Joel and Adam who are also from Canada. The ruins there were breathtaking, situated atop a steep valley of cypress and olive trees with a view that seemed to go on forever. We saw the Sanctuary of Apollo with its ancient monuments, temples and theatre, and the Sanctuary of Athena, where the Delphic oracle used to be. It was crazy to know that we were standing in a sight where so much history had occurred, walking the same steps of Alexander the Great and other people from Greek history. It was soooo hot that day, but the sights were spectacular, so it made the sweat trek worth it.

From Delphi we headed back to Athens to catch a ferry to Santorini, an island in the Cyclades in Southern Greece. We stayed on the Northern tip of the island in a small town called Oia that is famous for its sunsets. Our hostel there was amazing, it was more like a hotel and the people running it were wonderful. The sights from Oia were stunning...the city is built as if it is clinging to the steep walls of volcanic rock (the island is on the edge of a volcano), completely whitewashed to contrast with the dark rock. It is definitely a sight to see, we took so many pictures our cameras overheated. We spent a lot of time at a black sand beach surrounded by sheer rock cliffs, swimming in beautiful clear, blue water, getting tossed among the rocks as we tried to get in and out of the water....From Santorini we went to another island, Ios, where we met our friends Joel and Adam again. Our first encounter with a completely sandy beach consisted of a lot of swimming and lying in the sun being completely lazy...it's been really rough. This was by far the craziest party place we have stayed at and we were welcomed on the first day with a wet T-shirt contest that was something out of girls gone wild - I believe the boys enjoyed it.

We are now on an island called Spetses, staying with the family of a friend from back home, enjoying some amazing hospitality and food. We have about two weeks left before we fly back home, and the plan is to continue working on the tan and relaxing before heading back to reality and responsibility...We are having an amazing time, it seems now that it has gone by way to fast...

I will post pictures soon...

Kristi (keepin’ it klassy)

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[anonymous]

YOU ARE ONE CRAZY KID. eNJOY!