Greece - Athens, Meteora, Delphi, Olympia,


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November 22nd 2008
Published: December 10th 2008
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Greece-Athens, Olympus, Meteora, Delphi, Kalamata, Gythio, Monemvasia, Nafplio


April 1, 2008
Athens and Cape Sounion
It felt good to be back in Europe, even though at the airport outside of Athens it was raining. I got some money. It felt good to have Euros in my hands, although it was bad to think about the exchange rate. I was wondering if the people of Greece would want to talk politics like the rest of Europe. I hoped so as I liked the discussions. The comments from travelers is always different than the comments from non travelers. Travelers realize there are good people in all places of this crazy world and that the politicians are the ones that cause the problems not the people. People all over this world just want to dance! They just want to have fun! I am glad to be traveling now as the world hates President Bush and that leads to great discussions with lots of emotion. Emotion is good, as without that we would be more like a rock. Traveling is good too and I wish more people did it.

I arrived at the bus stop where Zoe, my next couchsurfing host, said to disembark. She is a social worker in Athens and was at work, so I had to find a way to occupy myself for the day, which is not too difficult with my writing and talkativeness. I went to a nearby coffeeshop and went in and noticed immediately all the smoke. I had read in Lonely Planet that people in Greece love to smoke. I walked to the counter and the lady spoke virtually no English, so it was time to hand signal and point to the proper phrase in the book time. After the communication or more like miscommunication, however you look at the glass being 0.5 full or 0.5 empty, I was served a Greek Coffee and sandwhich. Since I was in Greece it must be a Greeek sandwhich right? Anyway it was quite good and was a very filling breakfast. I normally do not drink coffee, but that was the easiest thing to order so I went with it. Normally I ask for hot chocolate but in this situation I thought it best to just go with her suggestion. The coffee was pretty good, but when I went to drink the sediments in the cup I was left with a somewhat bad flavor in my mouth, down my throat and into my stomach. I then questioned whether these sediments were meant for drinking. I learned later that the sediments were not for consumption. Oops, I hope no one saw that. Actually I hope someone did see that and got a good laugh. I do not mind someone laughing at me for something like that. I never said I was a smart guy.

After spending some time there, I went out to find internet. I met a couple from New Jersey that had moved to Greece. That elicited the involuntary response, "Are you Bruce Springsteen fans? They said of course we are. With something in common the conversation advanced and before long I discovered he is an amateur wine maker like myself, and I listened, while the two argued over how far the nearest internet café is. I finally decided to jump on the bus as it sounded like it was at least a 30 minute walk to the nearest internet café.

I jumped on the nearby bus and was on my way downtown. In the City centres they always have internet cafes. On the way the bus driver yelled at another car for what the bus driver saw as bad driving. He was not afraid to yell. I enjoyed this outburst and it was not the last utterance from the drivers mouth on my short bus ride. Yelling in a lot of countries in the world, does not mean what it does in the States. When you yell at someone there, it usually means someone has done something really bad. Here it can mean moderate dissatisfaction, as well as extreme dissatisfaction.

I found an internet place and was pleased to find the cost was only 1 euro an hour. After working on the internet for awhile I walked around and headed back to town. I headed back to my couchsurfing hosts place. I learned later in the day that she had not gone to work, because she had a herniated disc in her back and was in her apartment all day only a few 100ft from where I drank coffee earlier in the day. I carried my backpack around all day for essentially nothing. Oh well I am stronger for it.

That night Zoe fixed some really good octopus and pasta and fixed extra for me to take on the CS mountain refuge trip the next day. I felt like she was my mom giving me the food to take along. She is very hospitable and talked often about Greek Hospitality. This was a reoccurring theme throughout my stay in Greece. It was nice to see. Zoe had a friend over who was going to try some Alternative Treatment on her. Zoe said it helped. I talked to this lady and she was quite the bundle of energy and made for some good conversation. We called it a night. First day in the books and I still have not seen the Acropolis. Good night from Athens, Greece. Yep too good to be true! I am in Greece!

The next day I headed out to meet with the other couchsurfing people at the metro station they suggested. I got there about 30 minutes early and just hung out waiting for the rest of the group to show up, who of course was late, as is the case for most young people gatherings. I went and grabbed some decaffeinated coffee at the nearby coffeeshop and then came back. There was one guy who walked around a lot that had a backpack on, who I assumed was with the group, but he didn't come to where I was under the suspended rocks, where directed to wait. Later after a few more people showed up he appeared again. He said he expected a lot more people to be here so he walked outside expecting people might be there. The kid was from Israel and always seemed to be full speed ahead. At times he said things that I thought might hurt other people's feelings. Maybe it was language barrier or cultural stuff or maybe it was just him? More people showed up and there were people from Slovakia, Hungary, Russia, Israel, lots from Greece and the United States (me). It was a good group and most everyone seemed quite nice. Lots of different personalities in this group.

We headed out and I got to ride with Vanessa (the cs ambassador in Greece), Spyros and his girlfriend Vamicha(sp). This was a great trio and I was really lucky to be traveling with them. We talked about many things during the trip and of course America was discussed which I enjoyed. America is talked about everywhere in the world. I heard the term that a movie was too American. I think it probably means too much drama or too much action. Not sure. Hollywood has turned out some bad movies that is for sure, but on the other hand there are a lot of really good movies as well, like Joe Dirt one of my personal favorites! Maybe I should watch more foreign films. Maybe I would find them to be better.

About a dozen of us hiked to the mountain refuge, while the rest of the group drove to the mountain hut. The hike was quite eventful as we got lost a couple times. I really enjoyed talking to a young Slovakian woman named Katrina. She was traveling with her boyfriend Peter. Katrina is a very talented and nice girl and I got the feeling she could pretty much do anything in life. A guy who was a school teacher, was sort of the leader of the pack as he had hiked this trail many years ago, but had obviously forgotten the way to a certain degree. The Israeli guy seemed to always want to know every detail instead of just going with the flow like I tried to do. There was a lady in the group as well in her early 40's who I think did not expect the hike to be quite so grueling. I spent significant time talking to a Grecian man who sailed. He did not know the English terms for sailing very well, but we understood each other pretty well. We talked religion for awhile as well. He seemed borderline cocky to me and was so confident of what he had to say. He said church used to be really influential in Greece, but people now days realized what they were doing and the young people do not go to church just the older people. I told him now days we have a more violent society, there are many more divorces and kids grow up without two parents. He immediately went back to the bad things that churches have done in the past. I told him I do not think church is generally bad, I think a lot of good is done in churches, but you only hear about the bad things. I asked him the questions again or things better now days? Do the young people of today have it figured out? Again he kept talking about the bad things of the church. I reemphasized sure church can be bad, but most of the time it is quite good. I told him I enjoy hearing the readings and the sermons. I did state I think if a person lives the Golden Rule, he really can get by and be a "Good Person" without church. I have seen so many examples of non church going people living the word of God without going to Church. In my opinion going to church is a lot less important to God than living the gospel. But what do I know I am just a dumb guy with prodigious feet. I think by the end of the conversation we were a little closer to the mountain hut, a little closer to God and were ok with each others viewpoint. We both probably learned from the conversation. It seems the more I talk about topics like this the clearer my viewpoint becomes. 20 years from now my viewpoint may be a lot different who knows? Life is a learning process!

The mountain was quite beautiful even though it rained and was quite foggy often during the hike to the point where I could not see too far.

It was nice to make it to the top and head inside. Man there was enough wine and alcohol there to last us for several days. Lets hope we get snowed in!

It didn't seem like I ever really got into the party mode, but I did have a few beers. It was good to get the wet clothes off and some dry ones on. There were two dorm rooms and I got in the one that they announced was supposed to be predominantly for non smokers. It was quite a lengthy debate, on where smokers and nonsmokers were to sleep and I think made unduly complex. Everyone was very courteous. They had a fire going in the two fireplaces and there was a Canadian guy, probably late 40's, who played the guitar and was pretty good. Another guy there as well played for awhile and I enjoyed hearing these guys sing. Later in the evening I had some cake for one of the folks who was celebrating a birthday. They put a ring or coin in the cake and the person who finds it I think was to have good luck. I went to bed around 12, while most of the rest of the group was going quite strong. I think because I have been traveling so long I just do not have the stamina to party all night. These folks are sleeping in the same bed every night and resting during the day and partying on the weekends. It will be nice to get home again for that first week to rest up, but I am sure after relaxing for a few days I will be ready to get going again after only a few days. I do not excel at lounging around. I am not a power lounger. I put my earplugs in and prepared for a long Winter Slumber. There was snow on the ground here so even though it was Spring it still seemed like Winter.

I slept pretty good considering the circumstances consisting of about 30 people in one room. At least it was not costing me much I think like 12 euros for the night. I got up and walked around downstairs, where mainly a few older people were up at this relatively early hour of 8:00. They had a small fire burning in the fireplace to rid their body of the morning coldness, often prevalent in the mountain air. Awe, but that was fresh, air which is such a great exhilarating media to breath in upon first awakening. Many of the people though preferred to conquer their nicotine craving through smoking, while supplementing their breath with fresh cool morning air. I preferred the full dose of morning air.

I walked around outside, but often the clouds were so thick a person could not see far. There were some snow showers in the morning. This was the first time on this trip that I have seen snow showers. In a few places I saw snow, but never snow falling, except when propelled from the hand in a snow ball fight. No real snow ball fights just a few thrown in Xian, China and here the prior day when a snow ball was launched from the appendage commonly located on the upper right side of the body.

Back inside the mountain refuge a few people were stirring but not a mouse. It is amazing how people look different in the early morning hours than they do in the late evening hours especially if some beer was consumed by the gazer. Coffee was being consumed at a high rate and the volume of the conversations were increasing in direct proportion to the coffee consumption and the number of people in the room. I had some "heavy" chocolate cake, which the name escapes me at this time, but several people promised to send me a recipe, which I look forward to receiving.

I walked to the top of the nearby peak as at times the clouds cleared enough to allow the sun to penetrate the sky. Man it felt good to be in the mountains again.

Around 11:00 we headed off the mountain. There was some kind of car touring group that had just arrived. The cars were comprised mainly of mini coopers.

We headed off the mountain and went to the beach nearby. I learned later that it was a nudist beach and there was a lady naked on the beach when we arrived. After the lady saw the big group she covered up.

I was a little nervous as I wanted to swim, but knew the water was going to be cold. I wanted to conquer my fears and swim. After some time getting mentally prepared to swim, not in the sense of getting a lot of Adrenalin built up, but instead trying to relax myself. My approach is to go into cold water knowing that it is going to be cold at first, but then after about 1 min and 30 seconds at least for me, I am somewhat acclimated and the extreme coldness no longer seems so bad. I was the first one go in and I moved around slowly until the 1.5 minute was up and then I could tell it wasn't so bad. Sure I was cold, but it was not an extreme coldness like at first. I swam around for awhile. I would be lying to you if I said it was warm, but it was indeed bearable. I stayed in for about 5.5 minutes before exiting. I felt good about having conquered my fear and doing that. A little later a few other people got in as well. The Slovakian woman, Katrina and her boyfriend, Peter went in and she used my already wet shorts. It took a lot of encouragement for Katrina to get in. She was not afraid of the cold, and the water, but was afraid of something else, of which, I never quite understood fully. She was the only lady to do it and was very comfortable while in. One guy stayed in I estimate 10 minutes or maybe longer.

After leaving there, there was a big discussion on where to eat and finally the pork restaurant won out over the fish restaurant. It was neat as everything was cooked on a rotisserie and the food was quite good. Some of the pork however still contained parts of it's intestine that a few people ate. I tried it, but was not a fan. The food was quite good. The Israeli guy was a vegetarian and again instead of just going with the flow, which sometimes you do out of nicest, he kept making a big deal out of exactly what he was getting. He had clearly stated that he was a vegetarian and one of the Greeks ordered for him after a discussion on what he wanted to eat, but he kept quizzing incessantly on what he was getting. I thought he should have just trusted the people that ordered it for him and went with the flow, but that definitely was not his style. The meal was truly very good and talking to everyone was enjoyable as well. The final goodbyes were exchanged and we where on our way back to Athens. Man that has an amazing ring to it, but the locals just call it home. When you go to a far away place, especially a legendary place like Athens, everything seems so surreal. To hear people mention going to Athens just seems so weird. I here people talking about driving to Alton or St. Louis, but driving to Athens, just seems absolutely crazy. But that is exactly where I was headed I was driving back to Athen's, Greece. Someone pinch me.

I was left off at a subway stop and took the metro back to Zoe's. She was in lots of pain with the herniated disc in her back. I told her how the people that ate her octopus salad really enjoyed it. Zoe is a very good cook.

She had a friend coming over that was into an alternative medicine technique. Something about healing through touching or something like that. Hey if it works I am all for it. I went to grab some groceries during the treatment as I really did not want to disturb them.

After the session we talked to the lady for awhile and it was quite a fun conversation. She was a ball of energy and quite dramatic. After the tea and conversation we called it a night. Tomorrow I leave for Cape Sounion. This is the Temple of Poseidon if I am too sail the seven seas someday I had best get to know this guy well as I will need him on myside as my sailing ability is not too good. Good night from Athens, Greece. Yes I am like a kid at Christmas these days!

The next day I went to the bus station near Zoe's and hopped on a bus to see Poseidon. Again I was lucky as the bus near Zoe's is the one recommended by Lonely Planet. Not sure how I get so lucky but it seems things always work out well for me. Thus my favorite saying, "Things always work out." No use worrying about things not working out, as it doesn't help it only hinders.

The bus ride was very scenic as we were right along the ocean the entire time. Man Athen's nature is blowing me away. I got to Cape Sounion about an hour later and it seemed ok at first glance and the location is quite beautiful, but it did not blow me away as some places on this trip did. I was starved and was going to get a bite to eat at the restaurant near the site, but after waiting 20 minutes I decided to just walk down the hill and see if I could find another restaurant. This was not high season and I was concerned nothing else would be open as the two places that appeared to look like restaurants were not very busy. After walking off the hill I was happy to see that their was a restaurant open. I had a dip called 3 cheeses and some pasta. I wanted fish, but it was too expensive. I typed for awhile afterwards and then headed back to the Temple of Poseidon. He said Poseidon himself was out for the day taking care of some matters with Aphrodite and he had apologized he was not going to be able to meet me. I said that is ok as I know Poseidon has a job to do and I do not. I checked bus schedules before I went in and realized I only had about 30 minutes before the next bus back to Athens left so I hurried a little bit and really there is not a whole lot to see. The main thing is just the nature there and it indeed is quite spectacular. I ended up running to another point as I wanted another view of the temple off in the distance as the bus was about to leave. Man I had all day to see this place and now I am running around. Good exercise.

The trip back to Athens was uneventful and before long I was back in Athens. I walked past the Temple of Zeus and then through Plaka the touristy area. I Bought a tshirt that I thought was very clever. It said, "To do is to be, Socrates; To be is to do, Plato; To do be do be do, Sinatra". I thought this was very clever and was thinking Lonn would enjoy that shirt. The lady working there was quite nice and I enjoyed talking to her as well. From there I walked around looking for a place to have supper. I wanted to eat under the Acropolis somewhere. I found a perfect rooftop restaurant with a great view called Sissisfos. They had reasonably priced food that was delicious. It turned out to be a great night. I went back to Zoes and called it a night. She was in a lot of pain still. Tomorrow I am off to Mount Olympus. Quick somebody Pinch me!

Mount Olympus
I said goodbye to Zoe around 7 and headed for the bus stop nearby. The informational attendant said the person for me to get my ticket from would be there in a few minutes so I waited around talking to the informational attendant who was quite nice. It is nice to run into people like her.

I got my ticket and headed out for breakfast eating some pastries. I ran into a teacher that is a member of couchsurfing and was at the mountain refuge retreat over the weekend.

I went back and talked to a couple a women from Greece that was sitting near me. They were quite fun to talk to.

The bus ride to Lithoro was quite uneventful and I was quite taken aback by the scenery. Greece is an awesome place for it's nature alone. After some bus confusion I was dropped off in Lithoro. It was the Spring so there was not much activity on the mountain hence not much tourist activity in town either and most places were shut down. After asking and walking around I finally found information about refuge D which is the mountain refuge I wanted to go to as it was supposed to be open but it wasn't per the taxi driver. A policeman I asked said to ask the taxi driver as they would know if it is open as I guess they take people to it when it is open.

I called the hostel a couchsurfer recommended I go to but couldn't get through and the message was in Greek. The person then called me back seeing I had called and hung up and said his girlfriend would be in Lithoro and could pick me up there. I waited for her at the bar next to the bus stop.

The hostel is in Grista (I think) near the Aegean Sea. I was the only one there which is good for me but I feel sorry for the business owner in this situation. Hw was a very nice guy and I enjoyed talking to Peri and his girlfriend. They had just opened the hostel and was quite new to the business. He really was a likeable guy speaking good English and having lived on the Mountan for 3 month periods during his military service days. He commented the mountain was quite spooky which seemed a little odd to me. He fixed a nice meal and I had a beer and some good burger. I felt really at home here. Peri had a friend staying in a mountain hut and called him and asked him the conditions and said it was not advisable to go up there right now. He said he had a hard time making it there and he is an experienced guide with equipment. I quickely ruled out that idea as I had no gear and limited experience on mountains.

Peri said there was an American guy there about a week earlier and said he went up onto the moutain with essentially no gear and clothing. He said he was in training as a survivalist. Peri said he made it through the night and made it back but he said he thought the quy was a little crazy. I have to side with Peri on that line of thinking.

Peri said I should just hitchhike to Lithoro in the morning as the taxi I asked him to call was already busy. I liked to get to sleep knowing how I am going to get to a place but this night I did not. Well I guess I did I was going to hitchhike. Good night from Summit Zero Hostel on the Aegean Sea with Mount Olympus looming just outside the window.

The next morning I got up and had a quick breakfast and headed out. I headed out the wrong way and had to turn around and head back to the hostel. I walked aways and put my thumb out. I could see Lithoro where I needed to go off in the distance but it was a long step away. I was not having any luck hitching so I started walking. After about 30 minutes of walking I was picked up. The guy was a plumber or electrician and he seemed quite nice. It was a great experience and he dropped me off in town. I walked to near the trail head and got some groceries for the trip. There were a couple other people dong the same looking as if they were going to hike as well but they seemed to be contently doing their thing and I never got an opportunity to talk to them. I was guessing they were from Germany but I was not sure.

I headed up the famous mountain with my provisions around 9:30 AM. The clouds were moving swiftly across the sky, as if they were gods playing games. The view up Enipeas gorge was quite scenic. It seemed like around every turn there was a new view up the gorge. I walked over the water conduit which was of a rectangular cross section shape. At the end there was the intake structure and the pipe ended. I walked back on the trail and eventually made it up to the actual path, which was along the upper hillside. As I walked up there I saw the 3 other people and they were already past me. It was good to see them there, but a little embarrassing as I was off the trail and they were on it. I was too cheap to buy the map and therefore had to use the vague map in the Lonely Planet. I assumed those folks had a map. I made it up the boulder field to the path, on the way dislodging a few boulders that went noisily tumbling down to the stream below. It was a little bit of a rigorous climb as at times I was on my hands and feet and quite frankly a little nervous, but I did not perceive any of the climb to be life threatening.

I quickly got on the trail and passed the 3 hikers ahead of me. They were a little winded as was I, but I pressed on. The hike was really, really good. I stopped for a few photos, but none of them were going to find their way into the top 100 of the trip. You just can not capture the beauty of this mountain and of this hike in the camera lens.

I made it to Moni Agiou Dionysiou a monastery that was bombed in WWII by the Germans. It still had the hole in the side of the building from the German bombings. There were efforts underway though to rebuild the facility. It has become interesting to me when you see WWII stuff at least here in Greece, they describe the enemy as Germany, but while reading lonely planet it is written as the Nazis. Lonely Planet makes the distinction between Germany, and the Nazis, but a country that has suffered a lot like Greece refers to them as Germans.

I walked up to Prionia which was supposed to have a tavern according to Lonely Planet, but what I assume was the tavern was under construction. I stopped and had a bite to eat from what I brought along and then continued on to Refuge A. The guy working on the assumed tavern said I should try and go to Refuge A tomorrow as it was cloudy here and looked like the potential of rain. I told him I was leaving tomorrow and would just walk until I got tired. I walked for about 30 minutes and made it to a shelter and sat there and had a candy bar. It then started to rain and I made a make shift cover for my backpack with my extra raincoat. It rained enough I had decided to go back down. I was a little disappointed that I could not make it higher, but I knew I would not see the summit anyway as it is a two-day trip. The rain then slowed and gradually stopped and the sun came out. I will bet my bottom dollar that tomorrow there'll be sun. Ok no more musicals. I decided to walk a little farther and before I knew it I had walked another 60 minutes continually thinking I had to be close to Refuge A. Finally I gave myself until 4:00, which would be 2.5 hours of walking from Prionia. I turned around and headed back down and it started raining again so I got out my rain gear. It is amazing how the weather changes at different climates and just generally how unpredictable the weather is on a mountain. I made it back down to Prionia around 5:30. The guy I asked for a ride, said he did not have room. Fortunately, a family from England with 2 kids said they would give me a lift.

They took me to the turnoff, where I had gotten the hitch in the morning and they headed to a nearby ruins, which did not interest me. I walked the distance back to the hostel. I asked the guy there how far he thought I walked and he said probably 20 km which is 12 miles I was going to guess more like 15 miles. I tend to exaggerate and he seems to underestimate so I expect the real distance is 13 miles as he is probably closer than me since he knows the mountain so well.

Peri fixed me some supper and said there was another American guy who was supposed to arrive today and the guy arrived a couple hours later. This guy was a younger kid probably in his early 20's and we talked about hiking Olympus and I gave him some pointers about the hike I took. The wine was really cheap so I had about a 0.5liter as I am not one to pass up a good buy or pass out on a good buy! I really liked Peri and hope he does well with his business. He is a really laid back guy, modest and spoke good English. I am going to recommend his place to others. Good night from my last night at Mt. Olympus. This is a great place to hike.

Meteora
Peri's right-hand man fixed me some breakfast and then took me to the train station. He was an older guy in his 60's and spoke very little English. He took me in the wrong direction once we were near the station and I asked him if we should have turned back where I saw the sign train station. He looked confused and turned around and went back there. I guess he doesn't do this too often. He apologized all over himself and I told him not to sweat it. We made it there on time and I jumped on the train and before I could say Mount Olympus I was in Meteora. I mailed some items home and then looked for a room. I found a place recommended in Lonely Planet and checked in. The place was right under these amazing rocks. I could tell right away this was a special place and I was looking forward to hiking around this area. The people at the guesthouse seemed ok, but not overly friendly. I told the lady there, who was in her 70's I suspect, that I was looking for some food and she said she would fix me something. She mentioned two items, but I didn't really understand what she said. All I could make out was egg and said I would take it. I ended up getting eggs, bacon and toast. I wanted to use the internet, but the ladies son, who right from the start seemed like a know-it-all said I could not use the internet now because he just shut it off. This guy was overweight and I did not like him much immediately when I met him. He just seemed like the type that maybe was never very good at anything in life, but liked to talk like he knew everything. Not sure if that is accurate, but that is what my gut was telling me. I asked the lady if she would wash my clothes as there was a sign saying they offered the service and trust me I needed the service. The cost though was 10 euros, which was ridiculously expensive. She said if it is a small load it is 5 euros and a big load is 10 euros. I told her the load I had was not a full load but more than 0.5. She said she could not hang the clothes up as she had a bad arm. I told her I would hang the clothes up. She said her son normally hangs the clothes up, but he would not be back until later in the day and I needed the clothes to dry during the day as I was leaving in the morning. She said ok you hang them up. I left after putting the clothes in the machine.

I had a rough map of the area from the Lonely Planet guide, but it was not too good. I found a trail and followed it, but never saw a path to the left, which was to take me to a shorter path to get to the monasteries. The trail I stayed on took me near the monastery that was in the Bond movie , "For Her Eyes Only". I think that was the movie anyway. Supposedly Bond hand glides between these rocks in that movie. It was definitely a special place. A person could have a real cool trip just going to locations of Bond movies around the world.

The trail was more stressful than I thought it would be. I finally made it around and to the top of this valley like area . I then proceeded to my left, which is where the majority of the monasteries are located. It was quite spectacular. Looking back down the valley I just traveled through I took some pictures and I reconfirmed this indeed is a special place. I proceeded to the next monastery, which was located on a big rock right next to a road. Most people where in buses or cars. I met two hikers earlier but that was it. I saw where the basket was located hanging out the window that picked monks and their supplies to hoist them up to the monastery. The monasteries were built on these big rocks to avoid opposing armies. This provided a safe haven for them. I walked up the steps to the monastery only to discover a sign that said they were closed. The lonely planet book and the people at the guest house said they would be open, but the attendant said they closed early today. That's great there is only one left that I expect to be open.

I walked along the road to the next one and it is even more amazing the closer you got to the next one as the rock is much bigger than I thought it would be. I knew this one would be closed too, but it was right near the road as well so I walked over near it. Actually all the monasteries are near the road, which I assume is why they built the road where they did. I took a couple photos and was really impressed by this monastery. I tried to get a picture of the nearby redbud tree in the photo and was mildly successful with creating the picture I wanted. I headed to the next monastery that was definitely opened as there were several tourist buses there.

This monastery was indeed amazing and I read the wealthiest as well. A rich dignatory donated all his wealth to this monastery. I walked the narrow bridge to the sidewalk on the rock. I am not a fan of heights so I tried to not look down in several key spots. The most amazing thing to me was the wine cellar. This was great and I took a couple pictures that will definitely make the blog. Man I would love to have a cellar like this one. After salivating over the thoughts of making and drinking wine from this cellar, I wondered around. The church here too was very special and the theme was about the monks persecution over the years. In a musuem like area I saw a picture of a SS Nazi soldier falling from the rock representing the monasteries ability to fight back the Germans. I noticed too that in the text it refers to the soldiers as German soldiers, whereas in Lonely Planet they usually refer to the Germans part as being the Nazis separating Germany from the Nazis. Isn't it true that in most wars there are people in a country that oppose pretty much every war. For example the Vietnam war was opposed by many people in America, but the Vietnamese go so far as to call it the American War. I know that is a communistic propaganda type of thing to do, but myself as an American, says yes my country was in that war even though I am not sure of the merits. Whereas many Germans act like they were not even in WWII. I do not understand why they do not take responsibility for the war. A travel guide book alluded to this saying in Munich, where Hitler got his start, there is virtually no mention of the war. In Berlin they acknowledge it by creating the memorial to the Holocaust victims. I do not blame the current Germans for the war, nor do I blame many of the Germans that lived back then, as some opposed it, but to act like your country did not have much to do with the war seems crazy. I will be the first to admit that yes we started the Iraq war and have had lots of conflicts. I would then say yes I did not agree with many of the wars my country got involved in. I think the Germans should say yes we had a bad politician back then, who said he was going to do certain things for our country, and then did something else. That is not anything new, as politicians have done this kind of thing many times in the past. That is what politicians often do. Anyway the monks were not pulling any punches, they clearly stated the Germans and did not say it politically correctly by staying the Nazis. You often here it stated as Nazi Germany, which is another way to distinguish the country of Germany from Nazis. The Nazis though were the rulers in Germany. It would be like American's saying America under the Bush Administration (regime). I am not proud of our current leader, but I admit that he was our leader. The take home message is people all over this world or good people, we just have bad politicians sometimes.

This monastery was really cool and I enjoyed the wine cellar a lot. It would be cool to someday have a wine cellar similar to that, just a lot smaller. Maybe someday I will build something like that, just on a much smaller scale of course. After having a moment I continued on and marveled at this place. At times while looking over the edge I thought things like, "man now I know why they prayed so much" and "I hope they do not sleep walk." I was really, really impressed by this place and wished I could see another, but this was the only one open at this time of the day on this day of the week.

After leaving there I walked back down in a similar direction that I came, but only to get off the trail again and at times a little concerned about my safety as the briars and rocks were a little trying at times. I made it down and ask the lady if the laundry was done and she said it was. I went and hung it up and smarty pants was back. This hotel was pretty cool and they grilled lamb chops over an open fire in the fire place. I told the lady I would take some lamb chops as I wanted them to know how many to fix. After showering and hanging up my clothes I went downstairs, where supper was served. Smarty pants was there and said I could use the computer now which I did. I told him I wanted to use it for one hour, but would stop and eat whenever the food was done. At exactly 60 minutes he brought the food out and said my hour was up. This seemed a little sudden. If I were him I would have said something like, "sir, whenever you can wrap things up there, your food is ready." The food was ok and included some really hard crusted bread and slaw. The whole meal was ok nothing special. I talked to the guy about traveling in Greece and of course he knew all about that even though he had not been to half the places I was going. I told him I was leaving early on the train and he said I better get your bill now then. He brought the bill out and it was 65 euros. My chin hit the floor as that was $130. I scrutinized the bill and asked him a few questions like what is this 2 euros for and that 3 euros for and I learned I was paying for the bread and the salad in addition to the 12 euro lamb chops. I was also charged 10 euros for the laundry, which all they did was start the load and take the load out and put it in a basket. $15 for that service. I was trying not to be the angry American tourist, but I was not happy. He knew I was pissed. He was explaining the bill. Man I had been super nice to these people the whole day and now they stick it to me. I finally just said this is a really expensive day for me. I got really short with him handed him the money and went to my room. The more I thought about it the more mad I got. I finally wrote a note and would leave it on the bed when I left the next morning. I had talked to a group of kids from New York and they were studying political science and were on a field trip here. I talked politics with them for awhile and the one girl offered her book entitled, "The United States of Europe". I read about 100 pages of it that night as I was really intrigued by it and was too mad to sleep.

The next morning I was happy to get out of there. That is one thing that is kind of cool about traveling you can just leave your problems behind. In real life though you can not leave your problems like this. You have to deal with them. Well I was glad to be leaving this bad experience. This was such a special place though, I still was happy about this visit and highly recommend travel here.

My next stop was Delphi. I really did not know what to expect, but I was excited to go there, but not ecstatic. I was amazed by the shortness of distances in Greece. It only took a few hours and I was in Delphi. Delphi is set on this hillside with a canyon several hundred feet below. It was really, really good and I had not even seen the Temples of Zeus and Athena the star attractions. This place even without the temples is fantastic. The place I was staying too, was really really good. I really recommend people come to this place.

I found the hotel recommended by Lonely Planet and it was reasonably priced and very nice. I wished I could stay longer, but knew I shouldn't as I could rest when I get home as I am not sure when I will be getting back to Greece. I went down to visit the Temple of Athena and walked around the area where the athletes use to train. I met some folks from Canada in their 60's who were traveling in a group. Groups are good I think for some people, but I enjoy independent traveling much more. From there I walked up to the hotel and grabbed some supper and called it a night. Good night from Delphi, a very beautiful place, oh and they have some cool temples as well!

Delphi
I slept good and got up early and headed to the Delphi Musuem before the tour buses began arriving. I much rather going to places on the cusp of the tourist season as all the people take away from the experience. There were very few people at the museum and I guess the thing that strikes me the most is the age of these artifacts. Things here are around 3,000 years old. It is just difficult to fathom things being that old and still in some fashion standing. Marble is found readily around here and I even found a piece of marble on the sidewalk, when I was walking to the museum earlier in the day. I picked it up and thought maybe someday I will have something made from it. I ran into the people from Canada again at the Temple of Zeus. It seems this is often the case running into the same people as you travel. The highlight for me here was the track found at the sight where athletes competed. It was up on top of the hill and in really good shape. After spending about 3 hours I went back to the hotel checked out and went to the bus station. There I met a kid from Vancouver. The kid was a veterinarian who was taking some time off before going to work after college. He had a shirt on that said, "If you do not talk to your cat about catnip who will?" I thought it was quite funny and not offensive. He was a little crazy as he had traveled from Athens and from Delphi was going to Patra then back to Athens. This was the quickest traveling I have seen in awhile, but he only had a couple weeks for travel. He had a girlfriend in France. He said his girlfriend said American girls are all show, wearing scantily clad clothes, but no action. I asked him what is she saying, that American girls dress like sluts, but French girls actually are. He laughed and said he will have to tell her that.

I rode with him to Patra. There was a nice Polish Lady sitting behind me that was studying the Greek language here in Greece. She was a PhD student and appeared to be in her 30's and very attractive. She was quite funny and I enjoyed talking to her. Her stop came and she was unclear if it was the right stop and was hesitant to get off. I wanted to give her contact information but everything happened so quickly I never could. As she was walking down the steps and the bus was waiting for her to get off she stopped and looked at me and waved goodbye. I got the impression she wanted to talk longer as well, as she was very hesitant to get off. I tried to think about our conversation to see if there was any way I could still contact this lady somehow as I didn't even have her name. The only thing I remember she said she was studying at a university near Warsaw I believe west of Warsaw and was a PhD student. Now I think she said she was staying up by the lakes west of Meteora. Not sure that gives me enough to find her, but man who knows. In those 10 minutes we seemed to really connect. That is traveling the way I am these days. Really no chance to get to know anyone, as I am always pushing myself to get to the next place. Maybe I should travel the world looking for a wife 😊. What is the chances of finding one like that? I would say not too good. Anyway enough about that! I believe there are many people in the world that would fit with other people enough to marry. I do not believe there is just one person for each individual. That is a nice nostalgic thought, but in actuality I do not believe it.

Driving into Patra we crossed a bridge that is on Greek postcards, but to me it was just another bridge. Nothing too special. From there I took a bus to Olympia, my next stop. On the way to Olympia I called a hostel and they gave me a good price so I told them I would be there in about an hour. They said that is fine. The bus driver from the nearby town was in his late 50's I estimate and drove like a mad man. I was worried a few times, but we made it.

By the time I got to the Hostel in Olympia it was about an hour and a half later and the door was locked. It was only 11:00. I banged on the door and nothing. Then I called and a lady came down probably in her late 60's and she was mumbling something about me being late. I told her I had to wait an hour for the next bus in the nearby town. Then a guy about the same age came out really growling. I did not know what to think about this ordeal. He took me to a room where an Austrian guy was sleeping and gave me a bed. He grumbled at the Austrian guy for having his stuff on another bed. I was overly polite to the lady and the guy the whole time and they seemed to calm down a little. The Austrian guy who had been sleeping said these people are quite weird. I apologized for waking him up and he said no worries and was quite understanding. I liked him a lot. After a few hygiene measures took place I went to bed. The beds sucked, but it was a cheap and I think safe here! Good night from Olympia, home of the Olympic games. Maybe I can participate in a pickup game of discus throw tomorrow. We shall see.


Olympia
I woke about 7 and took a cold shower as there was no hot water yet, packed and headed out. The Austrian guy was on about the same schedule. The people owning the hostel were more polite this morning, than the night before. I remember the lady telling her husband last night to not be so hard on me, as I had called in advance. This morning though he was very polite. I left my bag at the front desk of the hostel to be picked up later and headed out. I walked to the museum as indicated by lonely planet and got turned around, but eventually found it. They had some amazing stuff there and even some stuff laying outside the museum looked pretty cool as well. Places like Greece and Egypt just have an unfathomable amount of historic stuff that museums in other locations would love to have on display.

After the museum I went to the actual location of the Olympics, which is the main thing to see here. There were several red bud trees in full bloom, that were very beautiful scattered amongst the ruins. The site was really spread out with a couple temples in several locations. The stadium itself was quite enormous, but the Grandeur was not there that a person would expect. Essentially it was just a hole in the ground about 30 ft. deep spread out over a large area. There was not a big seating area just a big round oval hole. Did the spectators just sit around the track in the grass? It was hard to visualize what actually happened. It would be great if these places made movies showing what this kind of place use to be like for people like me that are not good at filling in the blanks.

I ran into a Japanese man that was on the same bus as me. His English was pretty good for a Japanese person. I estimated him to be in his 60's. I was really impressed by him for his desire to travel at such an age and the fact that he was traveling alone. Most Japanese travel in these big tour groups. He was quite cool.

After a couple hours at the site looking at the temples, training areas etc. I left and headed back to get my pack. The site was ok, but I liked Delphi much better. The setting at Delphi was very cool whereas the nature here was nice, along a riverbank in a low lying area but nothing spectacular. This setting reminded me of back home as this kind of setting could be found there as well.

After getting my bag I walked to the bus station and the guy there was not in too good a mood. He was probably in his 60's and generally seemed really grouchy. I told him I needed a bus to the nearby city and he told me to go across the street and wait. I asked him how long before the next bus and he just grumbled something. I waited about 15 minutes and then went back to ask him if there was a bus to Kalamata and he grumbled more and I had no idea what he was saying, but he was visibly mad. I have no idea what this guys problem was, but he definitely had a problem.

I walked across the street and a taxi pulled up saying I had missed the bus and there was not another one for a couple hours. He said he would give me a ride though. I had no idea if he was lying or what was going on. I asked him when the train left and he said he didn't know, but the train station was just down the rode. I was finding the locals in Olympia to be a little sketchy. First the crazy old bus driver, then the crazy old couple at the hostel, now the mad old guy working at the bus station, now the taxi driver who was probably only around 50. I was glad to be leaving Olympia. This place is not that special.

The Austrian guy that I had roomed with was at the train station and he said the train to where we both needed to go would be here in about 15 minutes. Cool bananas! I mentioned the bus station attendant and he said too that the people he had been meeting here were not overly friendly. He was an archaeological student in Austria thus his interest in this area. He was very cool to talk to. We talked politics and he had a very historical view on world politics, which was very interesting to hear. Most Europeans think of current world politics and tend to forget about the 500 years between the 1400's and the 1900's that Europe was assaulting the world for furs, spices, slave trade for money. Now in the US we are doing similar things which I am not proud of but it seems so goes the world! Again good people just crazy politicians.

The train came, I waited for the next bus in the nearby town to Sparta, from which I had to take a bus to Kalamata. Sparta is known for it's fierce fighters who went through an amazing training regiment. I talked to a lady there at the bus station in her mid 30's that was extremely nice to talk to. I think maybe in the real established tourist towns they get so many tourist they probably get sick of them and do not have to be nice because people will come to those places anyway like Olympia. Again though I only sample a few people in these towns and can not accurately generalize. A person tends to remember the bad stuff too more than the good stuff.

It was great talking to her, then I hopped on the bus and headed to Kalamata. The main reason to go to Kalamata was to meet some couchsurfers as there were several there. I waited for the couchsurfer there and texted her. She gave me directions to the person I was to stay with as she could not host. The walk to their place was about about 30 minutes from where I was and I learned that they were students from all over the world that were volunteering here. There were students from France, Spain, Germany and Latvia. They were very young and said I was the oldest person they have hosted. I normally do not stay with people this young, but in this situation a person directed me to them. They were nice and staying with people this young is interesting as the conversations are a lot different.

We went out that night and met some other couchsurfers including Nancy the person that had directed me to the other couchsurfers. Nancy's boyfriend Spyros lived in Chicago for a long time. I enjoyed talking to these folks and had a great night. I met a young Italian lady that was really good at learning foreign languages and could brighten a room with her smile. She seemed very nice and talented. I think she could do anything and be succuessful with it in life. But exactly how a person defines success is individualistic.

Good night from Kalamata. I had a good first night. Nancy and Spyros had invited me to their place the next night for supper. I was looking forward to that! Meeting the locals that is a lot of what this trip is about to me!

Kalamata
I really did not have any sightseeing planned in Kalamata I just wanted to meet some people and maybe relax a little. I took my time getting up and then walked around for a while. I walked down to the marina one of my favorite destinations in any city to see the boats. There is something fascinating about a big
Olympia - Gate to the StadiumOlympia - Gate to the StadiumOlympia - Gate to the Stadium

Let the Games begin!
yacht to me. For some reason they excite me, more than a big house. I guess in a boat I see adventure, that is not present in a house.

There were a few boats in the harbor, but not many as it is still early in the boating season as it was a little cool. There were a couple people there that had decent sized sailboats. The couple people that I saw on there boats were from England. I talked to the one guy for awhile. He was in his late 50's I guessed and was living on his boat with his wife. They had clothes hanging off a line tied on their boat to dry. The guy had about a 34' boat and said he sails on the Aegean Sea. He said at times it gets rough. He said when that happens he tries to find a harbor. He acted like the weather forecasting was pretty good here so normally during the squalls he is off the water. It sounded like an interesting life style, but I am not sure I would want it forever. I like the land as well. I love to garden and watch the vegetables grow. I love hiking. I am thinking maybe someday it would be cool to be on a sailboat say for several months sailing from say San Diego to Australia or something like that. A lot depends on what my co pilot wants to do as well as I do not plan to spend my life doing things on my own. I like the companion ship of a significant other, but if I find myself on this trip called life alone, I am going to make the most of it. Not going to sit around and sing poor, poor pitiful me as the Warren Zevon song goes. I will rock on!

From there I decided to take a bus to the long distance bus station to see what times the buses left for Gythio my next stop. There was a really early bus and a late day bus with neither option appealing to me. I asked for an alternative and suggested to the guy going back to Sparta, then back down to Gythio and he said that would work and gave me a departure time of 9 so that was perfect. It was good I came here to figure this out.

Nancy the couchsurfing person that referred me to this other place to stay, and who had invited me over for supper tonight, still had not text me, so I was a little concerned whether she was still going to cook tonight. I had bought some Kalamata Olives, which are world famous, and some cheese, sardines and crackers. I know that is quite weird to bring, but I thought it would be an appetizer.

I went back to the apartment where I was staying around 7 and told them I still had not heard from Nancy and was really tired and did not feel like going, but thought if she texted I should definitely go as meeting more locals would be a great experience. The students that I was staying with had a Greek Class that night so I left to use the internet as not to get in their way. As soon as I started walking down the street I got a text message saying I should be at her place around 11:00 PM. I was thinking damn these people are night owls. 11:00 PM for supper. Wow. I find something special about early mornings.

I used the internet for awhile and then went back to the apartment, where I was staying at 9:00 and their lesson was still going on. The girls were complaining about someone they work with. You could here the youthfulness in the way they described the situation. I remember being that young once, but was not nearly as composed as these ladies. I think I really never felt comfortable with myself until I turned 30 and that comfort level then was somewhat false as it really was just an improvement over having very little confidence. Although no one really knows what synapses are firing in a persons head. I suspect some people probably thought I was confident. Everyone has there insecurities I think. I have just worked really hard at everything I have done, which helped me over come my shortcomings. Dating really has helped my confidence as well. I wonder what my life might have been had I been who I am now in my mid-20's. I feel like my life has been slow developing because of my lack of confidence. I feel now I am close to who I want to be. It is full speed ahead from here as you definitely can not go back.

The Italian lady was there as well that I had met the previous night. I jokingly asked her if she had learned any knew languages today, a commentary on her ability to learn languages quickly. I feel on this trip some folks think that I am not respecting their country because I am not learning languages as I travel, but I suspect those folks do not know the difficulty I have in learning the language. There is only a couple languages that I feel comfortable pronouncing and they are Italian and German. My tongue works for those languages. I do try to learn a few happy words in each country which makes for a lot better experience and the locals appreciate it as well.

The Italian lady said she was really disappointed that Belascony (sp) got reelected in Italy. She said he would give people money if they voted for him. Apparently this guy owns half of Italy. She said if he sends her money to fly her back to Italy to vote, she would vote for the other guy. And people say our system is flawed. If Italy was as powerful as we are, what do you think they would be doing around the world? I think the world is pretty lucky to have a super power in the United States, although I am biased. Germany was a military super power once and look what they did with their power. They tried to eliminate an entire race of people and take over the world. They wanted the whole globe to be Germans as German's were the utilmate race of people. At lease Nazi Germany believed that. A lot of people in Germany did not believe that. My heritage is German I have heard a couple people now in Greece say they should quit having the Olympics as the Americans win all the awards. Actually China is close to us and I suspect we will be overtaken in the near future on the medal count stand.

I went to Nancy's dinner even though it did not start until 11:00 pm.

I grabbed a taxi and headed to Nancy's place with my Kalamata Olives, sardines, cheese and crackers. It seems funny now to think about that combination of foods. I arrived and Nancy was busy finishing the cooking. Spyros was not yet home but Spyros sister and her boyfriend were there. I drank a beer and talked to them about some Greek Mythology that I recently read. It seemed like every story I would bring up they knew about. They seemed to really know there Greek Mythology. I brought up the story about the monster on Crete and the guy said he lived on Crete when he was a child. Wow this is cool stuff. This guy actually lived there. I was really having a good time. Spyros arrived around 11:45pm and around midnight we dug in. Yes we were eating at 12:00 at night. The food was enjoyable as well as the conversation. Around 1:00 I decided to call it a night. I decided to walk back to save on taxi fare, which was more this late at night. It took about 25 minutes to get back and I walked thinking how glad I was that I went. It was a really good evening and to think I really would had rather slept. That's it no more sleep for this traveler. Well lets start the no more sleep idea tomorrow. Good night from my last night in Kalamata, Greece. A place not many people can say they have been to as it is not a tourist town. It is just a town, where real people live!

Gythio
I said goodbye to my couchsurfing host. I noticed on their refrigerator a short story with pictures and captions underneath it. In a nutshell the story said these people fell in love had sex and had a baby and there life changed for ever. It was very straightforward. The straightforwardness was a great way to put it. Not hard to misinterpret what was being said there. The sex education I had really was just at a cellular level and unfortunately that is not the way the world works. The world works from the exterior of the body not the interior. I do not think kids understand the potential implications of sex. As a result there life changes forever as stated in this 20 word story.

I left and jumped on the bus which took me to the long distance bus station and after about 40 minutes I was on the road. It feels good getting on the road. Traveling is life on steroids. Things happen at a much faster pace.

I was quickly in Sparta again and soon on my way to Gythio. When arriving in Gythio I was immediately impressed by the beauty of the City. It was not a St. Peter's Bassilca kind of impression it was a more moderate kind of emotion. Supposedly the Helen of Troy and another person consummated their affair here that started the Trojan wars. The small peninsula with pine trees jutting out from the seashore was the location of this affair. After walking around town I found a place to lay my head. The lady at the hotel gave me a room for 20 euros, which was much cheaper than I expected. I told her I was looking for a cheap room and I am not sure she felt sorry for me or if that is the going rate, but that was what she charged me. When I got upstairs I was a little tired so I took a nap and soon she knocked on my door and said she had some lemonade and cookies for me. Man I felt like I was at Grandma's house. I really felt welcomed and told her if there was any heavy lifting or
Gythio - Hotel owner where I stayed.Gythio - Hotel owner where I stayed.Gythio - Hotel owner where I stayed.

This lady is awesome. Gave me a cookie and some tea when I arrived. Also gave me a ride with her daughter to the next City where I caught a bus out of town.
something she needed done around the house I would love to help out. She said no. A little later in the day she asked me about my travel plans and I told her I was trying to get to Monemvasia tomorrow. She said I would have to go to a nearby town and that she was going with her daughter there for a doctors appointment and that she would take me there if I wished. I told her that sounded great and she said to be ready around 8:00. I told her that was fine.

I walked out to the peninsula where the affair took place starting the Trojan War. It seemed like a pretty peaceful place. I wonder if most bad things start out peaceful. I would say things are progressive in that the small things turn into big things. That is probably often the case but not always. Casual drinking and casual pot smoking probably not bad, but sometimes it turns into problems. I suspect a lot has to do with the persons individual genetics and stimuli. I suspect that is a case by case basis type of thing.

There was not a whole lot to
Gythio - Olive OilsGythio - Olive OilsGythio - Olive Oils

They love their Olive Oil. I wonder if Popeye is jealous?
see on the peninsular, but it was pretty looking back at the City surrounding the bay. I walked into town and used the internet for awhile. There is really nothing that special about this town although the beauty is very nice, it was just a nice place to chill out. I ate at the nearby restaurant by the hotel and the food was just ok. Actually I did not like the fish at all. I think it was a little undercooked. I was the only one in the restaurant. The owner had a hobby or maybe more accurately put a obsession for model boats. There must have been 30 small model boats in this place. I enjoyed looking at those. I was wanting them to bring me the beer first as I like to drink that before the meal but in this case there English was really bad and when I tried to explain that to them they indicated they would bring the food to me. They thought I was wanting to carry the food from the kitchen to the table myself. That is traveling I guess. It was a nice experience seeing the boats and trying to communicate with these folks but the food was nothing great.

I went back to the hotel and turned in pretty early. I do not have the energy I once had. It might be time for me to wrap this trip up. Man it has been a good trip that is for sure!

Good night from Gythio! A nice place and I am staying with a very nice lady. The lady was in her 60's and her mother had Alzeheimers. I really liked this lady.

Monemvasia
I got up around 7 and had breakfast at the nearby restaurant. I had asked them about having breakfast the day before and the lady I was staying with talked to them as well and got everything to work out for me. They normally did not get up that early but they did for me. I guess they needed the business or was just being nice. Not sure or maybe both! I ate on the street next to the water and she walked the food across the street to me. After finishing, I walked the dishes back to her and she was grateful for me to do that and indicated that it was not necessary.

The lady from the hotel was there now and the 3 us made some small talk and then I walked back to the hotel to get my backpack and paid the lady for the hotel room. I sat there and waited for her daughter to arrive. This lady was a very classy lady and said her daughter is always late. She said I always get to places 10 minutes early, but her daughter is always 10 minutes. She smoked a cigarette and I so wanted to take a picture with her while we sat there and waited for her daughter but I was unsure how to ask her. She then went to the neighboring restaurant and started talking to the lady there. My picture taking chance was over as her daughter pulled up a few minutes later. Her daughter is a beautiful lady. I suspect in her day this 60 year old lady was beautiful as well.

We drove off and it was great listening to the two of them talk about a mile a minute. Even though I could not understand a word of the conversation, I knew what they where saying. They were having the
Monemvasi - Lodging on the Rock!Monemvasi - Lodging on the Rock!Monemvasi - Lodging on the Rock!

Rather Expensive but very nice and romantic too!
same conversation as mothers and daughters have all over this planet. These are the same people that are living in Billings,Montana and that are living in Palermo, Sicily and in Yichang, China. Mothers and Daughter universally are all the same. People all over this world are all the same for that matter. Just a little different economies, and lifestyles, but if you look at the soul of people we are really all the same. The world needs to figure out a way to talk to the soul of the people. Instead the world talks at the level of the elitist not at the level of the citizens who make up the country.

We drove past an old ship in this inlet and she said the ship has been there since 1967 (not sure of the date) and said it in a nonchalant matter like oh well. I asked her how it got stranded there and she indicated a storm put it there. She said everything in an easy going manner or a cool manner however you want to say it. This lady exuded coolness. She just had a presence about her that I can not describe. I could sit in her presence and the world just seemed to stop. Nothing in my life really mattered. She had an unpalpable, indescribable calming effect about her. It was like a person that you are totally in love with, that you can just sit beside them and feel calm even if the moment was awkward silence. Well this feeling never entered my mind when I was around her.

I so wanted a picture with this lady I finally just asked her if they had time for a picture. She said sure they had time. I learned too that her daughter was my age and has triplets. The man that is her husband I would say is a Lucky Man (a Bruce Springsteen song by the way).

Once we got into town they asked the locals, where the bus station was at. I told them just drop me off as they had to get to the doctors office. They, of course, said no we will take you there. These were very nice people. I again reaffirmed my desire for them to just drop me off and told them this town is not that big. They kept asking people along the road and finally they got to a local that pointed just up the road around the corner. I got out then and we took our picture. I thanked them and they left for the doctors office. I am not sure they understood my admiration of them. This is a real person. This is traveling!

I must have looked at that picture of the lady and me 10 times that day and a few times since then. A person having not experienced what I had, would look at this picture and say that lady does not look special. She looks just like a normal Jane. She is indeed though a very special person. Talk to those people sitting by you on the trains, on the buses, in the hotels. There are more special people out there similar to her. They are not wearing the finest jewelry, they are not living in the mansions on the hill (another Bruce Springsteen song) they are just normal Joes. I thank this lady for a real special travel experience. I hope more people get to meet her. She is who I want to become!

I walked to the bus station and they said I had a couple hours to wait so I walked down the street and typed for awhile at a café. I was the only English speaking person in the room. This was perfect. This is the kind of traveling I like. I sat there and watched mainly the retired people drinking coffee and probably gossiping about activities in the town. I couldn't understand a thing they were saying but I suspect they were saying the same thing as they say all over this world.

After a few hours I walked back to the bus station. I talked to the ladies there a little, but they didn't really have much to say. I walked across the street and got some pastries at the nearby café. The lady there was from Eastern European country and said she came here to work on a nearby orchard and ended up marrying one of the owner's sons. She spoke good English and was quite emotional. I suspect she fit in the Greek lifestyle quite well. She asked me if I had seen the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding and I said of course. She said that is how it really is. She semi-seriously said the traditions and how the people live here is crazy at times. She said the kids you have to name after the husbands ather. I said," I hear the name Spyros a lot". She said yes her son is going to have the same name as her in-laws kids. Essentially all sons must name there sons after their Dad. She said it is crazy we are going to be calling these kids the same name. It was funny listening to her explain this phenomenon. She was very inquisitive and asked a lot about my trip as well. As is common most people say they would love to do what I was doing, but do not have the opportunity. It is give and take. By doing one thing your giving up something else.

My bus came and I jumped on it and was on my way to Monemvasia. We had several stops on the way, but only had to get off the bus one time to switch buses. I talked to a lady from California for awhile. She was in her 50's I estimate. At Monemvasia I asked the person at the bus station where I could find a cheap room and she directed me to the same hotel that the lady from California was going. The cost was only 25 euros which I suspect was much cheaper than the lady from California was paying. I was really concerned about paying a lot here, but got lucky and got a really good deal. The room too was spotless and huge.

After laying down for a few minutes I headed to the big rock. This town is famous for the big rock in the ocean just outside the town. There was a village built on the rock and up above a fortress. Lonely Planet said one of the explorers who discovered this place says it has everything but water. As you walked around the rock you saw several cisterns where rainwater ran into. The village on the eastern side of the rock is a Unesco site and is amazing. I really loved walking along these narrow streets. The shops here too were amazing. This is an extremely romantic place. I would love to take a special person here someday and stay in a room on the rock. It is too pricey for me right now and not worth the cost for just me?

I walked around the top of the rock and noticed many flowers in bloom and thought about my allergies. This trip has been great in that I have pretty much avoided any allergic reaction problems as I have really not traveled anywhere when it was Spring. This is my first Spring experience. After walking around the rock and getting on poorly defined paths and almost stepping into a grated cistern, which could have been dangerous I headed back down to the village below where I met the lady from California randomly again. She invited me for coffee and said she would buy as she said her budget is probably a little more than mine. I told her she was probably right about that. I asked her if she would cover a beer instead of coffee and she said no problem. We talked about a lot of things.

I left there and headed back into town. I was feeling poor so I bought some spam, chips and a fruit drink for supper. The spam was horrible and I remember it was made in the Netherlands. Not sure why I remember that, but I do. I sure wish I would remember more important things rather than silly stuff like that. I guess I was a little surprised that it was made in the Netherlands. I should remember things that make me money. Just kidding as money causes a lot of problems in this world. Yet people still seek it often in detriment to their fellow man.

I watched a little tv in Greek and went to bed. Again I felt tired. I sure do not do much partying, while I am on the road. Good night from Monemvasia a very special place!

Napflio, Epidavros
I got up and had some breakfast at the hotel. The hotel offered a buffet, which I normally do not do, but it looked good so I went with it. They had hard boiled eggs and I ate 3 of them, as well as some salami , cheese and breads. It felt like a German or Swiss breakfast. It was good and I rushed to the bus stop, where I had to catch a bus to Napflio.

I was going to couchsurf in Epidavros, but first would visit Napflio. The bus ride was pretty uneventful and arrived in Nafplio around mid-day. Nafplio was pretty cool and is a destination for the local Greeks mainly from nearby Athens. It is quite cool and I hiked up to the castle on the hill, which had a great view over the City. Walking through the City here was quite special as well. There was an old church of course. It seems churches this day and age or more about tourism than they are about spirituality. It seems a little sad, but that is what is happening. I guess all things come to an end and some things are cyclical. Maybe this is a cyclical thing and religion will come back. Really though religion has morphed over the years. Look at what people use to worship all over greece. All these pagan Gods. Now they are great tourist destinations. In 1,000 years people will be looking at all our religious artifacts as tourist destinations too.

I enjoyed this town a lot. The couchsurfing host was running late so I chilled there, until about 6 when he picked me up. Christos and I made the journey in about an hour and he gave me some history of the area. He is an engineer at
Epidavros - Backpacking Polish ladies.Epidavros - Backpacking Polish ladies.Epidavros - Backpacking Polish ladies.

These ladies are sisters. I suspect they are in their 70's. That is great !
a fish processing plant in Epidavros. I think he has a pretty good gig for being in a small town, but he works a lot. He works many 10 to 12 hours days and then works on some Saturdays as well.

We went out and had some traditional food, which I really enjoyed as we were in a restaurant with lots of locals. There were some people there, that Christos worked with. They were sitting around drinking beer just like the guys do back in the States. I didn't know what they were saying, but I am sure it is similar to the discussions people have back home. Really people are the same all over the world. If the world could just get rid of those politicians then we would have something.

Good night from Epidavros, Greece. A very pretty town.

Greece - Athens 2
Christos left early and I headed down to the bus stop. The bus came about 15 minutes later and I jumped on. There were two ladies in there 60's that flagged down the bus just a short distance after we got on. It was great they had there backpacks on. I really
Epidavros - Backpacking Polish ladiesEpidavros - Backpacking Polish ladiesEpidavros - Backpacking Polish ladies

I took the picture incognito as not to embarrass them.
like to see stuff like that. They got on with their backpacks and I asked them where they were from. They said from Poland. I really would have liked to take a picture of these ladies with their backpacks, but felt bad as I thought they might feel like I was making fun of them. There was also an old gentlemen on the bus that had gotten some groceries. He was going a little ways and then got off. The bus driver helped him off with his groceries and there were men waiting for him as he got off the bus. I liked that.

The ladies got off, before we made it to Athens and I was sad to see them go. It was something cool about these ladies in their 60's with backpacks.

We made it into Athens around 4 and I went to my couchsurfering host, Marina's. I went to the metro stop she instructed and she picked me up. She was with her sister and her sister's boyfriend. They were fun to talk to and we had a great time going out for supper and for after dinner drinks. Spyros was the guys name, which is an extremely popular name in Greece.

A little later in the evening we went to the CS ambassador's birthday party. I met Katrina and Peter a couple who I had met when I was here earlier and enjoyed talking to them. I also met Zoe and several other people I had seen the last time I was here. It was cool seeing some of the same people I had seen the last time I was in Athens. We stayed there until about 1 and then headed back making it back to her place around 2. It was a fun night, but not the fun that I was hoping as I really thought it would be awesome to see these people again but it was just fun.. Nights like this that you anticipate for a long time never turn out to be as much fun as you envision. Good night from Athens. I have one more night here, then off to Egypt.

My last day in Athens consisted of me filling some lose ends. I went up to one of the highest points in town, Lykavittos Hill and got a great view over the city. At this site they have a theater and it is a must see place in my mind. I was wondering why folks have not suggested seeing this in the past. It was a good hike to get there by foot, but it can be accessed as well by car. From there I walked to the Olympic stadium, which was the backdrop for the marathon race at the Olympics when they were here a few years ago. The seats are made of a rock or granite material. The archery competition was held here as well. I didn't make it to the actual location of the venues for the majority of the games as most of them were held on the outskirts of town and you had to be in a tour group to see them. I understand that I could have gotten with a group, but it was going to be too much hassle so I decided to not jump through the required hoops.

I walked around the park near this Olympic venue, which I had been to before. I took a picture of some older men playing backgammon, which I think will make the blog. I then walked back to the touristy area of the Acropolis and bought another shirt that had the saying, "To be is to do, Socrates;To do is to be, Plato; To do be do be do, Sinatra" or something like that. I had gotten the first one for Lonn and the second one for myself. It's all about me I tell you. I talked to the women working there for about 30 minutes as I had bought the past shirt from the same person. She remembered me and it was fun chatting. It is always special to run into the same people on multiple occasions. It is comforting to be around things and places that are recognizable which has not been the case for me in about a year now!

I walked around and took more pictures near the Acropolis. I had a meal at the same restaurant as the last time there that I really enjoyed. This time the meal was not as good but it was nonetheless satisfactory. I talked to a daughter and her father that were eating at a table near me from the States.

From there I went back to Marina's to get my bag and head for the airport. Marina was a lot of fun to stay with.

I took the train to the airport and got checked in and before I knew it, I was in the sky headed to Cairo. It seems that some air carriers I never felt as safe on their planes. Egypt Air was one of those, as well as India Air, but I will not mention names! Anyway adios from Greece. Cya in Egypt! Pinch me this trip can't be real! I am heading to Egypt after truly being blown away by Greece. I will definitely be back to Greece someday!



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2nd June 2009

Wrong!
The Temple at Delphi is not Athena's, that temple is for the god Apollo. Get your facts straight!
10th November 2009

fell on your blog by chance
i love reading travelers' blogs like this one, especially this one because it's a different perspective of the country I'm from. you've made a pretty good itinerary there and I hope you really did enjoy your trip. I live to travel. And I appreciate real travelers, not just tourist travelers; real as in the kind of traveling you did. hope to see some more of your impressions of other places too! safe trips! ;)

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