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Published: August 3rd 2008
first Motel in Crete
Our beautiful first Motel, where I almost lost my handbag!Yassas! (Hello)
Well the Summer Holiday I had been waiting months for is all over so if you have time i'll tell you a bit about it! Actually I should warn you, it's not a bit, it's alot, so grab a drink and take a seat if you're interested!
Our trip started on Friday the 11th of July with the ten of us catching the Gatwick Express (1/2 hour) from Victoria Station to Gatwick Airport. From there we flew out to Heraklion Airport in Crete (one of the larger main Greek Islands). It was all very exciting on arrival, not only did we get bombarded by the 30 degree heat, our shuttle driver was holding up a sign with my name on it! (only the best treatment for me of course!) haha.
We arrived at the most picturesque hotel, it was made up of lots of little villas all on different levels with beautiful flowery vines hanging down and a very inviting swimming pool. All was well until I had to get my Credit Card out to confirm the room booking and realised that i'd left it in the shuttle! Thankfully the driver was only down the road
First night in Crete
At Restaurant on Rooftop and we got it back safely with everything in tact so I certainly learnt my lesson with that one!
We headed down the road that night for a traditional Greek Meal in a roof-top restaurant, I had 'Little Feet' (Aubergine filled with mince, bechamel sauce and then baked in the oven) and lots of Rose Wine, a great way to kick off the holiday.
The next morning we were up around 7.30am. As we got in the Shuttle to get taken to the Ferry Port we couldn't help noticing the Greek Motel Manager giving directions to our Driver (as he went on for about 10 mins in Greek).
We headed off on what should have been a simple drive to the Port but turned into a very nerve wracking experience. Our non-English speaking Driver spent half the journey getting in and out of the Shuttle frantically asking anyone he could find for directions. He then drove the wrong way down a one way street only to be told by one of our group to turn around. At this point I vividly remember suggesting that someone kick him out of the front seat and take over.
It
The buillt up area of Ios
Where the shops and Restaurants are hidden, looks like houses don't you think? turned out someone was watching over us as we spotted the place to pick up our tickets from and made it on the Ferry within ten minutes of it leaving. Phew!!
We had a very Choppy Ferry crossing (and this was no Interislander), we had to sit down the whole time and the area we were seated in was tiny! Food could be our only comfort at this point but after chewing on the cardboard that was originally a ham and cheese baguette I decided this was the worst way i'd ever spent being hungover.
We arrived in Ios to an equally warm temperature and lots of people bustling around the port with signs. We were taken to our Motel and spent the afternoon swimming, sunbathing by the pool and drinking cocktails before heading out for our second Greek Meal of the holiday.
Ios was a strange but amazing place, the main road seemed quite bare and there was no sign of a main city centre. It wasnt until we entered what looked like a hillside of houses that we found the real heart of the place with the shops and Restauraunts connected by teeny little pathways
and steps. Afterwards half of us headed out for a few drinks but it ended up just Alesha and I staying out talking to the locals until the early hours, was a great introduction to Ios.
On Sunday we hired some Quad Bikes and headed around the island to check out the beaches. It was such a beautiful island with lots of beaches sprawled around the place. We found a beautiful beach and parked ourselves up for the day. We spent the day sunbathing, chatting and reading our books, it was still very surreal that the we were actually there.
The boys met a guy on the beach from Otaki who was working in Ios for the Summer, he was really friendly and ended up taking them on an 'Extreme Doughnut Ride' and I was lucky enough to get to sit in the boat and take photos.
At one point through the day I asked if anyone wanted to have a look around the shops, Danz and I went and got a drink then headed over to a random Cafe not far from where we were sitting to get some water. As I approached the counter I
thought the girl serving looked familiar.
I immediately dismissed that thought, afterall I was in Ios of all places. Suddenly she looked at me and said 'Hello'. I was absolutely blown away, as if meeting a guy from Otaki wasn't enough of a small world, the girl serving at the Counter was Johanna Gemmell who I have gone through school with and known from Upper Hutt all my life. We caught up and it turned out she and her friend Maggie were working there for the Summer, I can't tell you much more than that as I was still trying to get my head around the fact that it was her and I could hardly concentrate on the conversation!
We had a Mexican Dinner that night and were all pretty shattered so headed to bed soon after.
'Can you hear that?' Anna said to me in our room before bed. 'Yeah it's the Air-Con' I replied. This went on between us for a good half hour until someone had to take charge. I walked up to the Wardrobe where the sound was coming from and said 'Ok, on the count of three i'll open the door and
Ewww smell that!
Arrived at the tip.. if you see a snake you scream.. One.. Two.. Three..'
Thankfully unlike Tony's visitor at his bedroom window there was no snake in our room but that's not to say there couldn't have been!
On Monday we hooned around on the Quad Bikes all morning, I was pretty pleased as I got to drive all holiday (the boys were way out numbered by the girls). We decided to head out 'off the beaten track'. We followed a dirty long road, got covered in dust and couldn't wait to see what amazing beach we might end up at.
As we got further along our hair and clothes were no where near as filthy as the smell that approached us. What had we discovered? The Landfill!
After lunch in a beautiful Greek Restaurant (I had Tomatoes stuffed with rice and herbs then baked) we headed to another beach in the distance and assumed sunbathing position. We ended up leaving there soon after as Baynes' Quad broke down. We went back to the main area to swap it and spent the afternoon at a beautiful 'Pool Bar' called Mediterrano.
We headed out that night to celebrate Anna's Birthday,
Mediterrano
The amazing Pool Bar in Ios had Dinner at a beautiful restaurant called 'The Nest' where we were treated to Mini Cheese pies, Meatballs and Moussaka. The man that worked there told us we had to have the 'Chicken a la Grecia' as 'it's the best' (he told us this in a VERY strong New York accent, needless to say we quoted him for the rest of the trip').
We later stumbled across a really cool bar named 'Orange Bar'obviously set up for Antipodean tourists like us. They played the likes of Foo Fighters and Metallica and served every shot under the sun from 'Creme Egg' to 'Snickers'.
From there we went to 'Slammer Bar' that the guy from Otaki recommended to us. After placing a helmet on their head and on the barmaids signal the boys each had a turn at having a shot and then had a choice of numerous objects being smashed over their heads ie. Beer Crate, Fire Extinguisher and other such heavy objects!
It was very entertaining to watch and obviously the Barmaid knew what she was doing as she wasn't very forthcoming when Jess asked if she could do the smashing part!
On Tuesday we made
Timmy gets a whack on the head
With a Fire Extinguisher at the 'Slammer Bar' the short journey to Fira in Santorini this time on a much larger and more comfortable Ferry taking only 45 minutes. Our shuttle driver took us on a very eratic journey up the hill in which we all held on tightly to our seats and prayed that our Motel had air-con as it was SUCH INTENSE HEAT. I wasn't complaining though! We met Anna's workmate and his girlfriend who were leaving on the day we arrived, they gave us great advice on where to go and what to see so that saved us alot of research.
Santorini was gorgeous, you will see from the photos it was a small island and if you stood in a barron area you could literally see from one side to the other. The houses and restaurants are scattered along one side of the Cliff Face and the view is spectacular. We spent alot of our time here at a Pool Bar called Kallisti and celebrated Alesha's Birthday (the day after Anna's) watching the Sunset and eating yet another Greek Dinner!
Over our next three days in Santorini we checked out the Kokkini (Red) and Kamari (Black) Beaches (literally just beaches with pebbles
Loizos Apartments
Our accomodation in Santorini below a coloured Cliff Face), headed out to Oia which was another area of the island about 30 mins by Quad and most afternoons were spent lazed around Pool Bar we found down the road (named Kallisti) drinking cocktails.
Santorini is renowned for it's amazing Sunsets so each night we watched the Sunset in a bar/restaurant (all of which are directly overlooking the Aegean Sea). Speaking of which, in our Hotel we got offered an upgrade for one of the rooms which Alesha, Nicola and Anna took. I have never seen such an amazing view in my life! We sat there for a whole afternoon just watching the Cruise Ships and enjoying the sun.
As for our rooms they were all newly refurbished and beat the dark caves we had in Ios, each Hotel has air-con cause it gets so hot. Jess and I were gutted on our first night when we realised our air-con didn't work so we had a VERY hot, broken sleep, only to be told by Courtenay in the morning that you had to have the verandah door closed which would activate a sensor for it to go on!
Jess and I headed
to the pool and were stopped by the Reception lady asking us 'Are you Danielle Sanders?', we told her that Danz was out and she kept saying 'Danielle, Mexican, Mexican Chicken', Jess was like 'no we're not Mexican'. I told Jess I thought she was telling us about Dinner in the Motel and that Danielle was in charge of our group.
After a bit more deciphering we realised that she was asking for Danielle to 'Check In', so much for our free Dinner!! We're still not sure what the Mexican part was about!
On Friday night we left Santorini and after spending the day out in the sun we were all pretty tired. We had Dinner at the port after being dropped down by the Shuttle (The port is situated at the bottom of a massive cliff, you literally have to drive up a really steep windy road to get up to the main part of the island). We arrived in Crete around 10.30pm and after a few too many drinks we were all ready for bed!
On Saturday morning after a very dodgy breakfast supplied by the Motel (weird fizzy orange drink and warm milk with
Tweety and I
Where we stopped for drinks. Was at least 40 degrees at this point! cereal, among other biscuits, ham, cheese and flies) the boys investigated getting a couple of Rental Cars.
We ended up getting two very bright Convertibles which we lovingly named 'Hercules' and 'Tweety' and headed off to 'Water City' (www.watercity.gr) which was a Water Park about an hour out from where we were staying. We split into two groups and unfortunately I landed in the car with not one Navigator and once we lost site of Hercules we were temporarily lost.
Thankfully after a kind Greek Mechanic and his Niece (she was only about 12!) gave us directions, we managed to find our way there and had a fantastic day running around the park on all the water slides. It was very entertaining and VERY VERY hot! We won't be forgetting that day anytime soon as both Jess and I had a weirdo life guard try to undo our bikini tops as we were mid-slide! (that's another story!).
On Sunday our last day (and a very hot one) we all woke up extra early and headed out to Sfakia (beach village) which was a two hour drive from where we were staying. The reason for this long drive
Group shot
It looked nice but the water was quite dirty there so we didn't stay long. on our last day was that Baynes wanted to see where his Grandad was captured during the war before he was taken to Poland.
We'd been told that it was even warmer on this side of Crete (wondering how it could possibly get any warmer as it was mid thirties where we were). We are unsure of the exact temp but all estimated it was in the low forties.
We spent the morning in the little beach village then made our way back stopping at beaches along the way. We were on a bit of a mission to find our own secluded beach, we found the perfect spot one only to drive down and discover loads of people with no clothes on so we quickly changed our minds! We ended up stopping at a few lovely beaches, one of which was completely deserted.
We were back at the hotel by 7pm and we had a quick swim in the pool before heading to the Airport, we were all very sad to be leaving Greece, particularly for the warm weather but at the same time were looking forward to sleeping on the plane!
The flight back took
around 4 hours and we arrived in at 2am London time (4am Crete time). The only annoying thing about arriving back into Gatwick is that you have to get a taxi back so we weren't in bed until 4am (london time) and all had work the next day but knowing what a fantastic time we'd had made it all worth it!!
OTHER INFO
The plumbing system is so bad in Greece that you can't flush toilet paper down the toilet! you have to put the paper into a little rubbish bin next to it.
Average estimated temp on our holiday was 35 degrees and it was amazing how quickly we got used to it.
All up I estimate we spent around £800-900 on Accom, Ferry and Flights and around £800 spending money (basically just food, alcohol and Quads etc).
The people were really laid back to the point where we found them a bit rude at times. There were loads of Australians around and a few Greek Australians too! (Kiri would have loved it haha).
The Food was Fantastic! As you can tell we ate out every night. My favourite food were these
Iced Coffee
One of my favourite things! things called 'Gyros' (pronounced Gee Row -you have to roll the R). It's like a special Pitta Bread with Lamb, Chicken, Beef or Pork with Lettuce, Tomato, Tzatziki, Onion and Chips all rolled into a kebab. It was very funny because until the last day when we asked someone how to pronounce it we were calling them
Ji-Ross (don't you love the kiwi pronounciation!)
We also had the likes of Moussakka, Pastitsio, Greek Salads (so good there), Chicken a la Grecia (chicken and vegies in a cream and cheese sauce) and Baklava. I also discovered Pistacio Gelati (sounds bad but it's great). I loved the way they sold 'Iced Cappuccinos' everywhere as well, obviously no one wants to drink hot coffee in the heat.
We all agreed that although we enjoyed it for 9 days the food was VERY rich and on our second to last day in Crete we all headed for McD's (as I like to do in each country to see what it's like) only to find it had closed down permanently! (what are the chances?!)
We flew with Easy Jet who are good but were late leaving (as per usual) and you don't
get allocated seating so people literally run on there like they've never sat down in their lives. Generally we manage to all sit together and it's not often you're left completely on your own. We experienced the weirdest take-off, it was really windy and as the plane was picking up speed to take off it started swaying side to side like a hammock in the wind! (that was a little frightening!) so I won't be unhappy if I never experience that again!
We were told by a guy that one person dies everyday in the Greek Islands in a Quad Bike related accident, thankfully we had no problems there! The petrol was super cheap too, it cost us 4 Euro to fill up the tank! (the tank was still nearly full after a whole day exploring as well).
The Currency in Greece is the Euro and we found things to be really cheap in Ios and slightly more expensive in Santorini and Crete. Overall to go out for a meal and drinks it was around £15 which is very reasonable!
We tried tp speak the language briefly with Efharisto (thankyou), Na (yes) and Yassas (Hello/Goodbye) being about
as far as we went.
I think that's about all the info I have, I don't expect you to have read all this but if you have WELL DONE! The pictures don't do the Greek Islands any justice but hopefully you'll get the general idea!
So it's back into London Life for me and the beautiful British Summer (grey and muggy), thankfully i've still got my job (Nina was claiming to her Mum that I wasn't her friend anymore because i'd deserted her to go on holiday!). In the next few weeks i've got a 'Night at the Dogs' ( Dog Racing with a sit down meal) to look forward to and also I was one of the few who managed to get Kings of Leon Tickets for Nicola, Clint and I (they sold out in 14 minutes!)
I Hope you are keeping warm and would love to hear what you've been up to. I have also included a few photos from last weekend at Ben and Jerry's Sundae Festival and a few of Nina and I so you can see how much she's grown!
Love and miss you all!
Olivia xx
P.S When
Sfakia
The beach we drove to on our last day. you are looking at the photos if you click on one picture it will enlarge then you can just right click to go to the next picture and so on, just in case you weren't aware of that!
Also my blog name is no longer under my full name so you won't be able to look at it without the link. Jess pointed out to me last week when she googled my name that my blog came up so I have prevented that from happening again!
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