Better late than never.
Greece is a popular destination for many Americans and surprisingly I had never been until this trip. I have heard so many great things about it, so I had to check it out myself. Unfortunately, I only had six days in the country, so I had to pick and choose where to spend my time. I landed on Thessonaliki (because I had RyanAir credit to still use and the flights were incredibly cheap) and Athens, because I don’t think you can visit Greece and not stop there. That means I didn’t have time to hit up the islands (like Santorini, Crete, and/or Mykonos) that so many people think of when they think about Greece. I guess I will just have to go back!??! I had a quick flight from Malta (but it was so late I landed around 1:30am) and went straight to bed after checking in to my hostel.
I won’t let a little rain RUIN my trip.
My first stop was Thessaloniki, a Greek port city on the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, about a two-hour drive from Mt. Olympus. I know what you’re thinking – did you hike the mountain? No I didn’t have time but next time! I woke up late in the afternoon to pouring rain. Whomp whomp. My first really bad weather day since I started my adventures. So I can’t really complain and honestly I needed a day to do NOTHING. I spent the entire afternoon catching up on upcoming travel plans, writing in my journal/blog and watching reality tv. It is really hard to do nothing when traveling, especially with limited time in a city. Everywhere I go, I want to make the most of my time there. I recently had a good friend message me and ask me what I do all day in my unemployment. This made me laugh out loud because if I was in her shoes, I would ask the same thing. However, my days are so busy! I spend most of my time exploring cities and touristy things, try the local food, meet fellow travelers and do as much yoga as I can. But back to Greece, I checked out a yoga studio for some ashtanga yoga (which is so hard – if you know, you know and it was taught in Greek so that did not make it any easier) and found a highly rated dinner spot called The Rouga. I ordered the baked Moussaka based on the waiter’s recommendation and it was amazing! And feta cheese for an appetizer, because my plan was to eat as much feta in Greece as I could while there. SO GOOD!
The next day the rain stopped and I woke up early to try to see the entire city in a day. I walked up the hill to the old city Acropolis to take in the stunning views of the city and coast. I ventured to the Arch of Galerius, the White Tower, the Trigonion Tower, the Vlatadon Monastery, the waterfront and the many shopping plazas. I had lunch at Thermaikos Garden and got a Greek salad and fried zucchini bites. I will never forget that salad. My mouth is watering thinking about it. When I think of Thessaloniki, I will think of the delicious food there and the long and stunning waterfront path that goes for miles.
More ruins.
Athens is sprawling with ruins between new architecture and modern life. There were way more tourists than in Thessaloniki and a lot more to see. I had three full days and planned accordingly. The first morning I obviously got a gyro for brunch (way better than I remember from my youth at Grecian Island in Brighton MI). I went straight to the Acropolis of Athens, one of the most well-known collection of ruins, or a citadel, that sits on a hill with tons of incredible structures remaining from the Early Neolithic period (a long long time ago). There were so many tourists with their selfie sticks just trying to get the best shot for the gram. To be honest, I also took lots of photos and selfies, pics to prove found here. I stayed for a while taking in the beauty and ventured down through the Plaka neighborhood lined with restaurants and more shopping than any one person can handle. After dodging so many tourists, I needed a break. I found a rooftop overlooking the Monastiraki Square and a prime spot for people watching. I enjoyed some cocktails and free nut mix while watching the sun fall over the city.
The next day I had a very typical lunch of chicken souvlaki and saganaki. Both delicious and worth trying when in Greece. I then thought it was a good idea to climb what felt like thousands of stairs up to the top of Lycabettus Hill to see the city from a different angle. I arrived at the top with a cramp, sweaty, thirsty, and out of breath…but I promise it is worth it. That evening I had a sunset tour to see the archeological site of Sounion at the very southern tip of Greece (about an hour drive from Athens). A large tour bus took us there and we had two hours to explore the ruins and beautiful coastline. I think these ruins are overlooked, but should not be!
I always ask to drive the boat.
While I didn’t make it to the large well known islands, I couldn’t leave Greece without seeing any islands. I booked an all-day boat tour through Get Your Guide to two smaller, closer islands. The boat took off from Marina Zea Pier and stopped at Agistri and Aegina. Looking at the weather ahead of time, I knew it wasn’t going to be bikini weather, so I dressed accordingly and boarded the boat quite early in the morning. There were about 30 people on the trip and all of them looked cold and miserable for the hour-long ride to the first island. I struck up a conversation with several female travelers from Texas, NY, and Italy. We were destined to make the most of the day. We walked around the first island and stopped to get a glass of wine to warm up. We boarded the boat where a very authentic Greek lunch including fava beans, tzatziki (I cannot get enough of this stuff), rice, grape leaves, chicken in red sauce and pita bread was waiting for us. It was delightful. On the second island, the sun started to peek out to warm everyone up! We visited the Temple of Apollo and the Archeological Museum of Aegina. The island is also known for its many pistachio farms, so I got some pistachio ice cream to try. We made our way back and the wonderful boat crew made sure our wine glass was full and brought out Ouzo to try. Ouzo is a very common dry anise-flavored aperitif that is very popular among the Greek and can be found everywhere. It tastes like sambuca and not my favorite if I am honest, but still good. Like I usually do on boats, I sought out the opportunity to ask the captain if I could drive the boat. He could see how excited I was and let me drive for like one minute even though the wind was quite brutal. It stormed for the entire ride back and while the weather didn’t quite cooperate, I made new friends, enjoyed local food, sailed through the rough sea and got my money’s worth in wine.
The jen essentials for greece.
- Feta cheese (I don’t know what they do to it but it tastes different in Greece)
- Rain jacket (don’t let the rain RUIN your limited time)
- Ouzo (this is a staple so don’t leave Greece without trying it)
- TV show to binge watch (I rarely watch TV while traveling, but if it’s raining you bet your bottom dollar I am!)
- A love of history (this is not me, but I can still appreciate what I am learning)
- Rooftop views (the water, the ruins, the mountains, the plazas are so beautiful from above)
- Warm clothes for boat (this is only if you are going during off peak season)
- Euros (cab drivers do not take credit cards)
- Ample amount of time (if I had to plan it again I would have spent time on the larger islands – next time)
- A good playlist (I did so much walking along the water and music just makes it that much better)
Wrap it up jen.
While I didn’t have much time in Greece and the weather wasn’t the best, I still made the most of my time. Thessaloniki was more local, Athens was busy and touristy, and the islands were quaint and beautiful. My takeaways from Greece – the food is incredible, the ruins are constant reminders of the history and islands are always worth visiting.
Next up: South Korea and Japan with my girl Jewel!
Signing off for now,
Jennifer