Greece

Hi everyone! We have been back from Greece for several days now, but rest and relaxation was needed before I could begin this blog. I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years Eve, and that your beginnings of 2008 have been as awesome as mine!
We originally wanted to spend NYE in Paris, as it has always been a dream of mine to count down a new year in The City of Lights. But due to recent rioting and transportation strikes, we thought it best to spend the turn of the year somewhere more mellow and much closer to Sofia. Greece sounded like the perfect destination!
We started our journey from Sofia to Thessoloniki, Greece by train early evening on the 28th of December. We shared a car with a man and his young son, and the trip was smooth and without consequence. We were all able to sleep easily, with the aid of our iPods, and we all considered this mode of transportation much more pleasing than the bus ride we took to Turkey. We arrived in Thessoloniki at about 1am to find the next train leaving for Athens (our final destination) wasn't until 8am. We weren't the only ones afflicted with this problem; there were at least 20 others who had payed for tickets in Sofia to take the train directly to Athens, but were told, albeit far too late, that this particular train was full. Although frustrated, our disposition was upbeat and optimistic. There were several benches available in the train station that would do as makeshift beds, and there were at least a couple of restaurants across the road still open and serving coffee and snacks. We walked over to fill our bellies with traditional ham and cheese pies (like a ham and cheese croissant, but not nearly as good as the ones at Sea Side Donuts in Newport!), and Dylan and I opted for beer instead of coffee. Why not begin celebrating? The small taverna (Greek cafe) quickly filled up with our fellow unfortunate comrades, as the other tavernas seemed to have closed around 1:30am. When we were full, we walked back to the train station only to find that it was closed until 4:30. This was not good. We were now tired and cranky, and just wanted to get to Athens. So we walked back to the taverna, put our sweatshirts on the tables as pillows, and fell asleep.
Before we knew it, the train station was open again and we were able to at least go to the benches and sleep a bit before 8am rolled around. We had our tickets ready when we were informed that we did not have seat numbers and that we would basically have to fight for seats on the train the whole way to Athens. When we boarded, there was a mad rush. It was crazy! People and luggage were everywhere, and there didn't seem to be one empty seat in all of the cars! Fortunately, all four of us were able to finagle seats and we settled in. This did not last. Not long after we were comfortable and on our way, we made the first of many stops, where people that actually had tickets with seat numbers claimed the seats we and others had settled into. Basically, the normal practice on this particular railway was that you buy tickets and can only hope for a seat after all the allotted seats are sold out. Unfortunately, the assholes at Sofia train station failed to mention this upon purchasing these bullshit tickets. So when someone stood up from their seat to deboard, there was a mad dash to that person's seat. If you got it, you felt like you had some kind of victory, only to have it taken away at the next stop when the person who paid for that seat claimed it. Inevitably, out of defeat, we succumbed to sitting on our luggage and trying to sleep amongst the other standing passengers. Poor Dylan was so mad that he sat on the train steps and fumed the whole time. This wouldn't have been so bad if it was a short trip. But this was a 7 hour trip! I couldn't help thinking, though, as I read my travel book, that this was part of the adventure and that this was something so normal to the locals, so why couldn't we accept it the way it was? Although it was uncomfortable and frustrating at times, I secretly languished this experience as something I will never experience in California. Don't get me wrong, though: there was never a time that I wanted my Audi more than I did now.
We (FINALLY!) arrived in Athens at about 3:30pm, and I was sooooo relieved to see that it was sunny. The sun, to me, is one thing I can always count on to brighten my mood and alter the way I view things. The power of sunlight is an amazing thing, and I thoroughly believe it has healing powers. When I stepped off the train, I almost immediately forgot the blight we had just undergone and was so stoked to be in the amazing city of Athens. I noticed it was much warmer here than in Sofia, so that added to my optimism.
As soon as we walked into the train station, Mom went straight to the counter to ensure that our tickets home guaranteed a seat number the whole way home. We weren't fucking around this time. Outside we caught a cab to start our trek to the city centre, toward our hotel. The drive there was fascinating. There were thousands of mopeds and motorcycles amongst the taxis and people were everywhere. I was so excited to explore this city that holds so much history, in both the lore and the biblical sense. It was exciting and new, and I knew immediately that the difficult trip there would be worth the time spent in Athens.
We got to our hotel, Hotel Myrto, soon thereafter and were disappointed to find it was NOTHING like the the website claimed. The pictures were as altered as a bad photoshop job on a myspace picture, and the rooms were like large hostel rooms. We considered going to the Marriot at this point, but we were so tired and Dylan was not about to travel any further away from a bed. The rooms were clean and the beds comfortable, so Mom and I decided to bargain with the man at the front desk. I had read that it is completely normal for people to talk prices down throughout Greece, even in hotel rooms, so I decided to try my hand at this. We quickly and successfully talked our way down from 150 euros to 100 euros, arguing false advertisement had led us to their humble hotel. The smiling clerk at the desk assured us it would be no problem, and we were relieved we were only staying in this hotel for one night. We went upstairs and passed out hard. I awoke at around 10pm to look out the window at the bustling city, and couldn't wait to get outside. Jordi and Dylan were practically dead to the world, so Mom and I set out. It was a brisk night and there were still lots of people out wandering the streets.
We set out to try to at least catch a view of the Acropolis at night, and found ourselves wandering the narrow cobblestone roads of Plaka, old town Athens. It was amazing! There were cute little cafes and bars everywhere, and everything was covered in greenery and twinkle lights. I was so in love. The people were so nice as we slowly walked with our coffees and looked at their wares, and people actually smiled at you as you walked past them! This is something I truly miss from Newport, as many appear to be cold in Bulgaria although this is mostly just the culture. All of a sudden, Mom pointed up and gasped. It was the walls of the Acropolis! It was beautiful at night, all lit up in it's magnificence. We couldn't take our eyes off it as we started to climb for better pictorial views. To think of all the history this one landmark holds. It has been the heart of Athens since the 5th century B.C. That is a loooong time! It was breathtaking.
When we got our fill of pictures, we went to this little bar donned with twinkle lights and had Irish coffees while talking to the bar owner named Harris. He was knowlegeable and kind, and seemed to have seen the look of admiration for his city thousands of times. After 2 drinks it was after midnight and we were tired, so we headed back to our quiet rooms and retired for the night.
The next morning was weird. When we went to check out of the hotel, the owner flat-out denied that his colleague had agreed to the lowered price, and basically called us liars. He told my mom that there was no way he would have agreed to it, so we told him to call the employee. Funny how he never reached for the phone. He fought with us, making himself look like a douche-bag in front of his other customers. He finally relented, telling us that we should feel guilty for taking money from his pocket. Unbelievable! We told him we would have never stayed there for 150 euros and that his website was a crock of shit. When we left I told my mom to get a receipt so he wouldn't charge her account for more than he was owed, and he refused. This guy was shady! A word to the wise: when in Athens, neve stay in Hotel Myrto!
Later that day we left for the Island of Santorini by plane. It was a 25 minute plane ride (as opposed to a 9 hour ferry ride) and it was smooth and pleasant. When we arrived, the excitement was obvious! The three of us are definitely beach kids, and being on an island felt comforting and close to home. When we got to our hotel, Porto Fira Suites in Fira beach, all four of us were super pleased. The suites lay on a cliff overlooking the Aegean Sea, and the room was lovely. It had plenty of room for all four of us, and the view was incredible. We dropped our luggage off and set out to explore. It was a beautiful and clear day. We immediately noticed that the island was really quiet and lacked the tourist population it normally has in the summertime. This was perfectly fine with us, as we had been spending all our time in major cities with lots of lights, noise and pollution.
We spent the next few days enjoying the scenery, meeting the locals, and trying the traditional cuisine. One afternoon we tried the traditional souvlaki which is a gyro (pita bread filled with vegetables, pork or chicken, and a sauce made of Greek yoghurt and cucumbers). Soooo good! The island is quite small, and although many of the shops and restaurants were closed for the season, we had a great time. One night, Jordi, Dylan and I went to Town Cafe, a little cafe that turns into a club at night. We went for drinks and wound up hanging out with some of the islanders. They told us what they did for fun (which mostly seemed to be causing trouble) and that there would be a party at the club next door the following night for New Years Eve. Although it sounded appealing, we all decided it would be best if we just stayed together for the stroke of midnight, and we had a quiet toast to a happy and healthy new year. This may sound odd to some of you, seeing as the three of us love to be in the center of the party, but we were all really content spending time together in a mellow way. We were just thankful to be with our Mama.
Soon it was time to leave the fantastic island and we flew back to Athens to spend one more night in Greece's capital. We got in a cab from Athens airport and went cruising along towards the Marriot Hotel. (You didn't think we would stay in Hotel Myrto again, did you? Ha!) While on the way, some old man cut off our cab driver and made an obscene gesture to show he was pissed we weren't going as fast as he thought we should. Upon stopping at the next red light, our cabbie threw his Mercedes into park, thrust open his door, marched up to the old man's window and began to scream at him in Greek, pounding on the man's window challenging him to a fight. The old man's wife was scared shitless while the 3 of us cheered our cabbie on! It was fucking classic! This guy was fearless and was not about to take shit from anyone! He got back into the cab gracefully, put his car in drive and apologized for the "crazy" man. So awesome!
We got to the Marriot, which was exactly as they are at home, and went to sleep for a few hours. After dinner that night, we went back to Plaka to show Jordi and Dylan the adorable town and to see the Acropolis one last time at night.
The next morning we slept in late (those are the best beds I have ever slept in!) and packed our things for the last leg of our trip. We had our driver take us to the Acropolis so we could see it up close for the last time. We took tons of pictures and admired the beauty of this marvelous architecture. It was awesome at night, but the way the sun shone on it made me see things I could have never seen at night. It was exhilirating!
Instead of taking the train home (even though we had assigned seats this time), we opted to fly to take all the heartache out of the ride home. The plane ride home was uneventful and quick, and before we knew it, we were back in Mom's cozy flat.
I feel so amazingly fortunate to be able to do the things we have done. Seeing these historic sights and visiting serene islands is not something all are able to do. I know we are all so blessed, and I truly thank God that He has allowed us these pleasures. Learning the things we have about eachother and other cultures affords us more education than any university could ever teach us. I can only pray that all you, my friends, will be able to feel the fullness of heart that I do when I travel. I hope you all are doing well! I love you all and miss you loads! Until next time, cheers!