First of all, this city is amazing! Hands down one of the most eclectic, vibrant and culturally rich cities I’ve ever visited.
While in Istanbul, we stayed at #bunk Taksim, located about 5 minutes walk from Taksim Square. Taksim Square is located in the heart of the city centre and happens to be the main transportation hub for the city. The metro system in Istanbul is very reliable and its routes cover the entire city. Our location was ideal for this reason since there is so much to see and do in Istanbul.
Getting to know Taksim Square on our first night in Istanbul
Taksim at Night…so much to see and do.More sights from Taksim Square, Istanbul
On our first night in Istanbul, we decided to walk around Taksim Square and the adjoining neighbourhood of Beyoglu. We wandered through very crowded streets lined with all manner of bars and restaurants. There are two things about this place that struck us immediately, the first being the amount of people out and the bold, aggressive approach of the men who work at getting you into their bars or restaurants. They will do whatever it takes to get you to stop in front of their establishment, short of grabbing hold of you and physically dragging you in. At first intimidating and then comical. Whatever their methodology it always starts with “Lady, can I ask you a question?” And is usually follows up with, not a question, but more of a statement meant to entice you like “rooftop terrace”, “cheapest beer in Istanbul”, “good prices”, but never an actual question.
Spectacular view from one of Istanbul’s many rooftop bars
Taking in the sights of one of Istanbul’s rooftop bars
On our first night we stopped by Mado for some rice pudding, Turkish coffee and Turkish Delight, followed by a beer at one of the many bars offering a rooftop terrace (nearly every bar in Beyoglu has one). I have been a fan of rice pudding for as long as I can remember, as my memere Genier used to make it every weekend and it kicked ass. However, this Turkish rice pudding was on a whole other level. It was richer and creamier with less rice and more pudding, finished in the oven with a nice golden crust and topped with a bit of rose water. Simply delectable. Not to be outdone, the Turkish Delights were almost otherworldly, available in a head spinning variety of flavours from pomegranate to pistachio to orange to rose water – complete with dried rose petals. Delicious and beautiful. I wanted to eat all of them! All of this followed by Turkish coffee, bold, flavourful and gritty.
Rice pudding, my absolute favourite.
The next morning we were off to Cihangar Khevlahti Evi for a traditional Turkish breakfast. Let me say that these people LOVE their breakfasts. The traditional breakfast we ordered consisted of 4 different types of cheese, eggs with sausage, a variety of breads, olives, salami, pomegranate jam, tahini, fresh honey and honeycomb, and salad. There was enough food for 4 people! We ate it all though! Only problem was that after gorging on this massive breakfast we realized we would be late for our free walking tour Emma had signed us up that morning and we had a 45 minute walk to the start point. It was a bit of a mad rush to get there in 30 degree heat. We arrived at the start point – ON TIME – and began to search for our guide. We weren’t able to locate them so we asked the tourist information people who worked in the park and they told us that this tour doesn’t exist. That it was just a scam. Apparently, they lure you to the square in this very touristy neighbourhood where they offer all manner of tours at a cost, once you arrive you’ll probably decide to buy one of the tour packages being offered. Well, not us my friends! We were pissed, of course, we literally half ran there in the heat to get there on time. So, after sculling down some water we toured the area ourselves.
Traditional Turkish Breakfast
We snapped photos of the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, also known as the Sultan Ahmet Mosque, and started our own ‘self guided’ tour.
Hagia Sophia, IstanbulBlue Mosque, Istanbul
Our first stop was the Basilica Cistern, the largest of many cisterns below the city. It was built, by slaves, in the 6th century during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I.
Basilica Cistern, Istanbul
Next up, Istanbul’s famous Grand Bazaar. Let me say this, it was most certainly grand. We could have spent the entire day exploring the maze of stalls with vendors selling everything under the sun from antique lamps, dried fruits, exotic spices and woven rugs. It was wondrously overwhelming. We must have been there for a couple of hours and didn’t even visit a tiny fraction of the place.
Scenes from inside the Grand Bazaar, Istanbul
After spending the bulk of our day wandering around Sultanahmet exploring the many attractions we slowly made our way back to our hotel, but not before grabbing a bite at a small pide restaurant (of course).
We did stop at a different bar every night, and every single place offered a different experience from rooftop terraces with sweeping views of the city and live entertainment and that night was no different.
For dinner, we stopped at Durumzade, a kebap place which was featured on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. OMG, it was by far the most delicious meal of our trip so far AND it only cost us $7 each! Admittedly, we were questioning our decision to stop here as we made our way there. The street it’s located on can only be described as something out of scene out of ‘Taken’. The street was nothing more than rumble and our table was set up just outside the entrance to the place with old tires and piles of bricks strewn about. Regardless, the food was incredible. Anthony did not steer us wrong.
Durumzade
So delicious…me so happy!
On our last day in Istanbul we hopped on the ferry to cross the Bosphorous and visit the Asian side of Istanbul, and by Asian side I mean the part of the city located on the continent of Asia. It as a pretty cool experience taking a short ferry ride and then stepping off in another continent. This Istanbul neighbourhood is referred to as Kadikoy. It has a very different energy compared to the very frenetic and crowded Taksim Square. The streets were much less crowded with cute little shops and sidewalk restaurants. We even found a nice park by the water where we napped for a bit. It was unbelievably quiet and so peaceful.
Crossing the Bosphorus to the Asian side of IstanbulOur unexpected lunch guestAdorable lunch spot in Ortakoy…definitely not as crowded as Taksim SquareHarbour at Kadikoy, Asian side of Istanbul
After a few hours in Kadikoy, we boarded the ferry again, this time making our way to Besiktas, a waterfront neighbourhood, this time located on the European side. We quickly discovered that it was very touristy and decided to walk to an area known as Ortakoy. A few people we met had recommended that we check it out. Ortakoy consisted of several small shops and restos, as well as a large outdoor market located along the waterfront. It was just as touristy as Besiktas but I rather enjoyed it because it was lively and eclectic.
Shisha bar in OrtakoyOpen air market of OrtakoyHello there little fella.Waterfront at OrtakoyWandering through Ortakoy
After enjoying some food from one of the many food stalls, we made our way back to the hostel to freshen up before spending our final night exploring this amazing city.
Taksim square is a major landmark in Budapest and a central hub for the metro, it also happens to be a great place for people watching. We saw more crazy in that square and its surrounding than anywhere else in the city. On our last morning in particular while enjoying our final breakfast there we witnessed a man being kicked by an old lady then slapped (very lightly) by a random guy – he fled across the square bawling at the top of his lungs, without once looking back. We then spotted what appeared to be an attempted cat poisoning, followed by a fully naked man taking a bath in the fountain. No one batted an eye at any of this. Just your typical day in Taksim Square.
Istanbul is an incredible city, visit it if you have the opportunity, I know I’m grateful I did!
The next morning we were up early to catch the ferry to Ios, the ‘party island’. The port in Ios was bustling. Tourists scanning the crowd for someone holding their hotel’s sign, letting them know that their shuttle was there to pick them up. Emma and I found our guy rather quickly and were soon making our way up the hillside to Chora, our home for the next 3 days. Our host, Yannis gave us the low down on buses, beaches and bars. The bars don’t open their doors until rather late and some nightclubs even later (2:30am). If you’re looking to party ’til the sun comes up, this is the place for you! If you like beaches, this is the place for you! If you like buses, well nobody likes buses, but they’re cheap and they run often.
Our hotel, The Village Twins, is located right in the heart of everything. It doesn’t have a pool, but we honestly didn’t need it, the beaches of Ios are fabulous and plentiful. Our room was super cute with a good sized terrace at the back. The room and bathroom were very clean and the A/C worked beautifully. The owners were very friendly and gave us great tips on places to visit while in Chora. They offer a small and inexpensive menu – cold 1/2L beer is only 2€! Cheapest beer on the island and cheap tastes better – always!
Village Twins, Chora
Our first night in Chora, we checked out The Nest for some traditional and local Greek cuisine. Yannis, the owner of Village Twins had recommended it and it did not disappoint. The serving sizes were enormous and the price was reasonsable. Emma had the moussaka and I had the eggplant stuffed with meat. Both were really tasty and quite filling. After that feast, we needed to walk, like a lot, as I said, the meal portions were enormous and we were in beach country now. So, climbed to the highest point of the town to snap photos of, what else? The sunset, and it was GLORIOUS!
Portion sizes at The Nest were huge…and delicious
Manganari Beach
We then explored the tiny streets of Chora, checking out the various bars, lounges and shops.
Our second day in Chora was a beach day, as was our third. We visited the main beach, Mylopotas. There are regular buses that run every 10 minutes which will ferry you to the beach for a mere 1.80€ and the view from the tops of the hills along the way are well worth it. The beach itself was pretty quiet earlier in the day, as most of the partiers were likely still sleeping off the remnants of the night before. It started to pick up later in the afternoon, but it never felt overly crowded. The beach loungers could be rented for 7€/day, but the sand was beautiful and we opted to lie on our beach blankets instead. The water was very clear and the fish swam up to us while we waded in the crystal waters. Cool thing about this beach is the sand actually glitters. When we got back to our hotel, our feet looked as though they’d been bathed in glitter! FYI: Emma HATES glitter, and yet strangely enough, she didn’t seem to mind having sparkling toes.
Mylopotas Beach, Chora
That night, we “pre-dank” a litre and a half of white wine, and left our room promptly at midnight in search of some of this famous Ios nightlife. It did not disappoint. So many bars vying for your dollars with plenty of deals to be had on drinks (if binge drinking is your thing). For 25€ you could get 7 shots and a singlet to commemorate a night that after 7 shots you likely wouldn’t remember anyway, so the singlet is useful in that you at least know which establishment to thank for your hangover and beer goggles mishaps. Emma and I opted to have drinks at a series of spots so we could sample the nightlife. I’m a bit of a commitment phone so settling on one spot when there were so many to visit suited me just fine. We visited a few places and ended the night on a very crowded street sipping cold beers and people watching. We had a beach day planned for the following day (quelle surprise) so we called it an early night and were back at our hotel by 3:30am.
Martinis in Chora
The next morning, a little hungover, and definitely in need of a low key day, we hopped on the bus to Manganari beach. The bus is 7.50€ return and the views along the way are themselves worth the fare. The beach is 11km from Chora but the ride there takes about 45 minutes. The road is all steep inclines and switchbacks with the most breathtaking views of Ios. The landscape of this island is truly surreal. Everything looks photoshopped, it’s THAT stunning.
Manganari Beach
Manganari Beach
Manganari beach is isolated, small and very quiet. We settled into our loungers and pretty much stayed there until we either got hungry, thirsty, or needed to take a dip to cool off. The loungers were free and Christo’s Tavern in the beach serves up the coldest beer on the island and the freshest good. I had the Greek salad and Emma ordered the grilled calamari. Again, serving sizes were enormous and the food delicious. After lunch, Emma lounged in the sun for a bit and I wandered off to snap a few photos. It was another perfect afternoon on Ios.
Given that the next morning we would be taking the ferry to Santorini, it was a relatively early night for us. If we’ve learned anything it’s to NOT have a big night before a travel day. Thank you Amsterdam for that lesson.
Santorini
Santorini, viewed from the caldera
We arrived in Santorini by ferry. I had visited Santorini 5 years ago, but was still awestruck by the cliffs of Fira as we arrived at the port. We immediately booked a shuttle to Stella Hotel, our home for the next two nights. As the shuttle van weaved its way through the switchbacks up the cliff side everyone in the van was oohing and ahhing at the scenery as the port below became smaller and smaller as we approached the top of the cliff. The vistas of the caldera and Nea Kemini from the top were absolutely breathtaking.
We drive through Fira and then onto Kamari where our hotel was located. Kamari is located on the opposite coast. It’s becoming more and more popular as a less expensive alternative for food, drink and accommodations for the budget minded traveler. The small town offers regular bus service to Fira where you can catch connecting buses to Oia. It’s also about 10 minutes from the airport.
Our room was lovely and the hotel offered free breakfast, which we took full advantage of, poolside of course.
Since we only had 2 days in Santorini we did not waste anytime and grabbed the bus to Fira as soon as we were settled at the hotel.
Let me tell you, it was bloody hot that day and the 10 minutes we waited by that bus stop, in pools of our own sweat did seem like an eternity, however we quickly discovered that the buses are air conditioned (thank heaven) so the miserable wait seemed worth it once aboard the bus.
Now, you should know that the public buses can get very crowded. We spent an entire bus ride from Oia standing – great core workout – but certainly not ideal.
We wandered around Santorini in a heat inflicted zombie state, snapping pictures along with everyone else in the tourist hoard then made our way to a taverna for some cold microbrews. With renewed energy we decided to make our way to Oia by bus to watch the sunset.
The famed blue domes of OiaYay!
Oia was ridiculous! The tourists had descended upon that town like a swarm of locusts. Everyone was filing through the tiny streets, lining up to snap photos of the iconic blue domes and that famous sunset over the Aegean Sea. We followed along, didn’t have much of a choice really. You do get swept up in the crowd. We took so many photos that both our iPhones and camera batteries died.
Sunset from Oia
Unable to take any additional pics, we had dinner at one of the tavernas then climbed aboard the bus to Fira in the middle of the post sunset mass exodus. It’s absolutely crazy how touristy this entire island is. The crowds are unrelenting and the businesses shameless in the fact they they subsist solely on the tourist dollars. I have to admit, it made the place feel a lot less special to me.
Our bus ride back from Oia was an adventure to say the least. Packed in the aisle like sardines, bus filled to capacity and standing room only as our driver navigated the steep hills and curves of the road atop the cliffs. This was not an enjoyable ride. Trying the stay standing through the twists and turns was challenging enough but add to it the being stepped on, or having some fellow super sweaty traveler brush up against you, the inescapable waft of body odour all around, bleck! I just wanted it to be over.
When we arrived safely in Fira I was thankful. Now all we had to do was get the connecting bus to Kamari. That was easy enough. However, we really didn’t know where we were going and ended up traveling the entire route until the last stop in Kamari. We had clearly missed our stop and then had to walk for about 30 minutes from where we had been dropped off to get back to our hotel. Just great! Upside? It was so dark as we made our way back that we had a wonderful view of the star. Downside? We were lost and wandered around for a bit befriending stray dogs along the way. We must have circled around our hotel for about 10 minutes, served us right for not making a point of knowing which stop was ours.
Next day we were super excited to get going. We booked an excursion to walk to the top of the volcano, swim in the hot springs, visit Thirassia and then watch the sunset over the caldera from the deck of the boat.
The boat ride to the Kea Kemini offered us some even more amazing views of the cliffs and the cities of Fira and Oia perched atop.
Views of Santorini from Kia Kameni
We arrived at the volcano (entry fee is 2€) and began our hike up to the top. The hike to the top takes about 40 minutes and it’s fairly steep in some places. The hike itself was not particularly challenging, however, combined with the high temps and humidity it felt like walking into the 7th circle of hell. The volcano is still active and we could feel the heat emanating from the ground beneath our feet – this just added to the inferno’esque feel of the climb.
The heat, the humidity and the inclines were all forgotten however as soon as you reached the top of the volcano. From there we had sweeping 360 degree views of the caldera and the sea. It was a clear day and we could actually see Ios in the distance. After a few minutes of photo snapping it was time to make our descent back to the boat.
The top of the volcano – phew! Worth the climb.A tiny bit tired from the hike, but that view though!
The hike down only took about 30 minutes and we were back on the bait making our way to the hot springs for an hour of swimming. I opted out and instead sat on the boat watching the others jump into the water while I enjoyed a very cold beer.
To be completely honest I have zero regrets about not swimming in the hot springs for 2 reasons
1) Everyone who exited the hot springs had iron stains on their swimsuits and towels
2) An elderly couple on the excursion also joined the group in the hot spring swim, unfortunately the woman was unaware of a trail of toilet paper stuck in the front of her bathing suit. It wasn’t like a couple of squares, it was a couple of feet of toilet paper trailing from her suit. Once she was in the water, the toilet paper started to come apart and float up into the water surrounding the other swimmers as they tried to avoid it. Just gross. She exited the water a bit later, joyful at having cooled off in the water and oblivious of the trail of wet toilet paper still clinging to the side of her leg. Good for her! Too bad for everyone else.
After the hot springs it was off to Thirassia, the small island across from Santorini’s main island. Thirassia is home to approximately 100 families. The families live at the top of the island during the winter months and down at the shore during the summer months when both the fishing and tourists are plentiful. The income they make over the summer months on fishing and tourism sustains them for the remainder of the year. Unlike Santorini, the homes and businesses at the top of the cliffs are all but abandoned during the summer months. I’d like to point out at this time that our tour guide did tell us this before we arrived at the Thirassia.
The climb to the top…we did that!?
When we arrived on Thirassia we walked along the shore and inspected the steep path up the cliff side debating whether or not to make the trek up. Common sense did not prevail in this case (when does it ever?) and we decided to hike up to the top.
They took the easy way!Channeled my inner donkey.
Oh. My. God. What the hell were we thinking?! The switchbacks were merciless, some sections of the path had to be at least 60 degrees or more, riddled with donkey shit – the smell! My eyes were watering and I was gagging. The gagging didn’t bother me, I was terrified of stepping in one of the countless steaming mounds of donkey poop covering the path. I was wearing flip flops, I had switched out of my Cons after the volcano hike.
Looking at the fishing village below.
Along the way up the mountain (it wasn’t a mountain, but it may as well have been) there were signs for ‘Different Restaurant’ promoting their free wifi and swimming pool! Yay! The promise of a swimming pool was all it took to motivate me. I channeled my inner pack mule (my new spirit animal) and pushed my way through the gagging, watery eyes and mounds of shit to get to the top of that mountain! Once we got to the top we took in the scenery and explores the abandoned village. We did see a few people but they easily outnumbered by cats and a few dogs. Hot, sweaty and thirsty, we followed the signs to ‘Different Restaurant’ which, it turned out, was closed. There would be no wifi, no beer and no swimming pool. Was ‘Different Restaurant’ offering a ‘different restaurant’ experience in that you could have a seat at any of the tables but you could not expect to be served.
The only residents we located at the top of Thirassia
Ugh! Snapped some pictures then hiked back down. The views were great, it was worth it…maybe. I’m still undecided on that one.
Fishing boats in Thirassia
We are at one of the restaurants along the shore and then back on the boat to watch the sunset over the water.
Now, the sunsets in Greece have been spectacular but nothing and I mean NO sunset I have seen so far will ever compare to the sunsets in Santorini! Words fail me, so here are about 400 pictures of the sunset we saw that night. (Ok, I have limited my post to 3 pics of that sunset, but I did snap about 400 that night.)
Sunset over the waters of the caldera
Really couldn’t get enough of this sunsetOkay, last sunset pic, I promise!
That sunset sail was the final curtain call on our trip to Santorini as we were flying out the next day. We spend the following morning lounging by the pool before our flight to Crete, as you do.
Crete
No visit to Greece would be complete without a visit to Crete. I know that every island in Greece has its own character, and Crete is distinctly different in terms of culture and cuisine. I love Greek food, but Cretan food, on my opinion blows then all away. Just don’t, whatever you do, drink the Raki. That Cretan firewater is the worst!!
We opted to fly to Crete as opposed to taking the ferry. The cost of the flight was almost the same as the ferry and was only 20 minutes versus and 2 1/2 hour ferry.
Our flight landed at around 9pm and we easily found the bus from the airport that would take us to our hotel. The bus costs anywhere from 1.50€-2.50€ depending on how many zones you travel through. Though we easily located our bus, figuring out which stop we had to get off at was a bit more challenging. First of all, the digital crawl sign at the front of the bus listing out the route stops as we made our way from the airport wasn’t working. Call me crazy, but would this not be an important feature to have working on a bus that ferries foreigners from the airport to the centre of the city? Secondly, ALL THE STREET SIGNS ARE IN GREEK, which made it a bit difficult to figure out where the hell we were. I started to worry that we might miss our stop so I walked up to the driver and asked him if he would please let us know when we got to our stop. He didn’t speak or understand English, but I was able to point out our stop on the map and he assured me that we hadn’t passed it yet. He indicated that he would.
Thankfully, Emma is a wiz at directions and reads trip advisor reviews religiously and she recognized a food market that had been mentioned in one of the reviews for our hotel, so she knew we were close and sure enough at the next stop there was a sign for our hotel! The bus stopped and though the driver didn’t say anything he left the bus parked and door open until we clued in that we were at our stop. From there we had a short walk to our hotel. Yay!!!
Just waiting for the bus in Heraklion
Park Hotel is where we would be staying for the next 3 nights. The room was okay with a balcony, A/C and a roomy bathroom (compared to most of the other bathrooms thus far). Now, the room was meant to have a kitchen, but instead the kitchen was a sink, an exhaust fan above a countertop, um, no stove or hot plate so we were unclear as to the purpose of the exhaust fan. Oh and no fridge. So basically, no kitchen. Anyway, we’d make do.
Our “kitchen” – not a kitchen
Our first day in Heraklion and decided to keep things pretty low key and explore the town centre. I much prefer Heraklion’s city centre to Athens. It was comparatively clean and we felt very safe. Everyone was very friendly and we easily found inexpensive food options – gyros the size of your head for 3€! The shopping is very good, each of us bought a dress, you know for ‘a night out in Barcelona’. Never mind that we both brought one piece of carry on, already busting at the seems. Something would have to be let behind in Crete. I’d already ‘left behind’ a pair of flip flops in Mykonos to make room for 2 new bikinis that I ‘absolutely needed’. Sacrifices needed to be made.
Gyros the size of your head!
After wandering through Heraklion centre for an entire day, we returned to our hotel for their spaghetti dinner. It was actually delicious with one of the best Greek salads we’ve had so far and only 8€ each!
We spent the rest of the evening playing cards and drinking cheap house wine.
Our last day in Crete and we wanted to check out the nearby beach. The path to the beach was just outside the entrance to our hotel, how convenient, so we walked over right after breakfast. Thank God we hadn’t made plans to have a beach day in Heraklion. If you love sandy beaches littered with everything from discarded cigarette packages, hair brushes, dirty socks, empty beer cans, cigarette butts, basically all manner of garbage then this is the beach for you my friend. The sole running shoe and striped underwear in the middle of the sandy path leading the beach should have tipped us off. ‘This is not the beach you are looking for.’ Just nasty! You may think I’m exaggerating here, but I assure you I am not. Check out the photos, if you dare. It’s not pretty.
Path to the beach…see how happy Emma is!
Random trash as we arrived at the beachThis is the beach sand…we played “Count the Ciggy butts”
After shaking off the horror of ‘Garbage Beach’ we made our way to Knossos, located about 5kms from the city centre, the largest Bronze Age archeological site on Crete and considered to be the oldest city in Europe (first settlement dates back to about 7000 BC). Knossos is believed to where the King of Knossos lived as well as the political centre of Minoan civilization. We spent about 2 hours exploring the site. The site itself is beautiful but it’s also surrounded by some stunning hillside views.
Knossos, the oldest city in Europe
Knossos
After visiting Knossos we made our way to the Venetian port for a late afternoon walk along the break wall. More history, more stunning scenery and more photo snapping.
Locals fishing along the breakwallShore along the Venetian Port
The port of Heraklion
After a day of walking and touring the city we made or way back to our hotel where we spent the rest of the evening sitting by the pool catching up on emails and finalizing some last minute travel details before heading to Istanbul the next day.
Emma and I arrived in Greece over a week ago and we’ve been busy! We started in Syros, then off to Mykonos, Paros, and Ios…as we wait for our ferry to Santorini, I thought I’d update you on what we’ve been up to. By the way, EVERY island sells post cards with their name followed by “The Best Island” caption. I thought I would assign categories to each of the islands we visited, in keeping with “The Best Island” theme. You will notice that not a single island received a Best Island for WiFi access…it’s basically shit and in some places mega shit, that’s why it’s taken me so long to get this post up…just sayin’.
Syros – “The Best Island” for lazing around in the sun:
The beach located directly across the street from our hotel
Arrived in Syros, our first stop in Greece, after over 12 hours of flights, waits, ferries and buses and it was so worth it.
Now there is one thing I want to mention as I feel I would be remiss in not bringing this to your attention. Traveling for any amount of time on a ferry or bus in Europe in the middle of summer is NOT glamorous, like at all. Every travel day we leave our hotel freshly showered in clean clothes and our spirits filled with hope that today’s travel experience will be different. It NEVER is. Every travel leg, be it on a plane, a bus, or a ferry it ways ends the same way. Emma and I sweaty and stinking, reduced to puddles and wanting nothing more than a shower and fresh clothes. Some days the trip is short and the shower and bathroom are clean and fresh towels are waiting while other days you end up sitting naked on a stool in a 3×3 foot stall that smells like it hasn’t seen the end of a cleaning brush in decades just praying that your skin doesn’t accidentally brush up against the wall or shower curtain while you attempt to wash the dirt away. Lucky for us, since arriving in Greece we’ve had nothing but clean bathrooms and functioning showers, which makes me fear for what awaits. We’ve been a little too lucky over the last few days. It has me worried.
I’m not sure if it was the combination of the airport bathroom incident, the middle of the night flight, 3am arrival at Athens airport, the 1 hour bus ride to Piraeus port (the man drove like a ‘goddamn animal’, seriously luggage and people were jostled about the bus like balls in a lottery machine), the seemingly innocent glass enclosure on the ferry to Spyros – just a giant easy bake oven for us to slow roast in – but by the time we got to the island my feet were swollen to twice their normal size.
I spent the first night lying on the bed with my legs above my head against the wall to drain the blood from my feet. It was surprisingly comfortable. Who knew that sleeping in an L-shape could be so restful? I awoke the next morning to normal size feet – yay!
Enjoying a beer while watching our first sunset in SyrosFirst sunset in Syros, Greece. This picture does not do it justice.
The next morning, Emma and I got right down to business, and by business I mean eating breakfast then finding wine and a spot on the beach conveniently located directly across the street from our hotel.
We spent the entire day lying on the sand and taking the occasional dip in the sea. The waters were crystal clear in the morning, however, by mid afternoon we noticed something was off. This idyllic setting was no longer. The first thing Emma pointed out was a dead frog floating in the water, upon closer inspection, we quickly realized that it was no dead frog. It was something much, much worse. To our horror, the thing floating toward us in the water was in fact a discarded tampon. As we quickly tried to create as much distance between us and the NOT A DEAD FROG, we then spotted more trash floating in the water – ice cream cone wrappers, a panty liner, plastic bottles, etc. It was as though someone threw a bag of trash into the water. Our spot on the beach, which had been so beautiful earlier had almost instantaneously been transformed into a scene from some post-apocalyptic movie where the seas are filled with trash. Yuck!
(We were told later that afternoon that someone had cleaned things up. Apparently, a passing boat had carelessly dumped their trash into the water…who does that?! Anyway, there is a group of volunteers in Galissas who take care of the beach and do their best to keep it clean. The mess was cleaned up rather quickly.)
Picturesque Galissas, Syros Greece
Needless to say, we left the beach and retreated to our hotel across the street. While in Galissas we stayed at Maistrali Hotel, a small family run property. Our room cost us 90€ for 3 nights and it was a great value. Located directly across from the beach, small balcony at the back and breakfast buffet every morning for an additional 5€. The bathroom was good but the beds were really hard, as in one step above sleeping on a concrete slab. We were in room 1 which was right next to the reception desk. It was ok most of the time, however, the owner who often sat at reception behaved like a petulant child most days – shouting at guests and locals, annoyingly ringing the service bell whenever he wanted the staff to bring him something (most likely a drink because he appeared to be soused most of the time). He was also really flirty – offering to have me run away with him to the Maldives – What?! He was so loud that one couple switched rooms in hopes that it would quieter, didn’t work. There really was no escape.
Our quaint little hotel in Galissas. Maistrali is a family owned hotel, with great rooms and a very good price.
Galissas is a really quaint little town. There really isn’t a lot to do there, but that was kind of the point. After the hustle and bustle of Prague, the change of pace was most welcome.
The town is mostly a tourist stop and appears to exist for that reason alone. The shops clearly cater to tourists selling all manner of souvenirs, postcards, beach towels and sunscreen. The restaurants all face the beach so you can take in the full magnificence of the sunsets on this island, and trust me, they are spectacular. The menus feature Greek food with some burgers and chicken nuggets thrown in for the less adventurous eaters.
While on Syros, we took a bus from Galissas to Megas Gialos a nearby beach town. Again, super small and quiet, but the beach was beautiful and CLEAN! We had lunch and a beer (of course) while overlooking the beach. The bus ride was about 15 minutes and the fare was 1.90€ each way. Well worth it.
Megas Galios, Syros, GreeceChef’s salad and a beer – just a light lunch given that we’re in our bikinis and on the beachDakos and beer, my light lunch…quite tasty.
We spent every evening either drinking beer or wine and toasting the sunsets. On our last night in Galissas we climbed to the peak of the large hill overlooking the bay. At the top of this hill is a tiny white church and one of the most amazing views of the town below and the sun as it sets behind a nearby island. If you happen to glance to the left of the hill you will notice a tiny beach located in a small cove. The water looked so inviting and we may have considered checking it out the next day were it not for the colony of nude campers who had overtaken that tiny beach.
Cove beach as seen from the top of the hillPicnicking at the top of the hill – a girl needs to eat after a long hikeSunset as seen from the top of the hill in GalissasThe church on the hilltop after sunset
As we made our way back down the hill toward our hotel we couldn’t help but marvel at how serene the town below was.
Mykonos – “The Best Island” for people watching:
Arriving in Mykonos Town
We boarded the ferry to Mykonos late morning and arrived at the port little more than an hour later. As we searched for our hotel transfer van, to no avail, I double checked our reservation confirmation email and discovered that we had arrived a day early! No wonder they weren’t there to pick us up. As soon as we realized the droid, we set about finding accommodations for the night. Emma quickly found us a private room at the Paraga Beach Hostel next to Paradise Beach for only 15€ a night each! Problem solved. If you ever arrive at one of he ports without lodging, do not fear. There are always people there with offers of rooms to let – even in high season. Don’t be afraid to negotiate and you can get some pretty good deals, depending on where you are of course. Mykonos and Santorini shamelessly survive on tourism and there are very few deals to be found.
Paraga Beach Hostel, Mykonos Greece
We arrived at Paraga Beach Hostel and it was awesome, well the pool and restaurant area was. The pool was surrounded by beach loungers and beautiful people. The DJ added to the overall Cafe del mar feel of the place. We were walked by the pool and brought to our room and that is when the fantasy ended and the reality hit us. We would not be sleeping in a room, oh no, we were camping that night my friends. We were sleeping in a tent. No A/C, one light and a screen panel for a window. With military style cots for beds. No wifi either so no distraction from the environment whatsoever. We quickly changed into our bikinis and made our way to the restaurant/pool area and ordered the mixed grill plate for two – we were famished after all. The grill plate was the best idea we’d had all week it was piled high with chicken, sausage, meat balls, pork chops and fries and it was DELICIOUS! After devouring the meat plate, we ordered a couple of beers and settled in poolside. Seriously, there is no better time to show off your bikini body than after you’ve eaten your weight in grilled sausages and french fries. Am I right?
How do you think I keep this bikini body…I just eat this!
After two beers worth of sun baking and quick dips in the pool we left the pool and walked over to Paradise Beach next door. The last time I was there was five years ago and a lot has changed. There are more bars and lounge chairs. Every bar is competing for your attention and your dollars. We settled in front of the Guapaloca bar to watch the Brazilian dancers. The host was entertaining and they were giving away free shots…so sure why not! We spent the rest of the day and most of the evening at Paradise Beach sipping beer, various cocktails and a bottle of rose. We ended up dancing the rest of the night away – the DJ was really good – playing everything from rap to hip hop to dance. We sang along and jumped around like idiots. It was awesome!
Overlooking the beach at Paraga Beach Hostel
That night as we made our way back to our tent, we toyed with the idea of sleeping on one of the couches outside the club rather than return to the sweat lodge we were booked in. We went back to our ‘room’ turned on the useless fan and tried to sleep. It was almost impossible to do so. Our cots, despite being elevated about a foot still had us feeling like we were sleeping on the hard ground. How did they manage to do that?! Add to this the fact that the place was a party hostel and there was zero sleep to be had. At one point I swear I heard some guy bust out his ukulele to serenade a group of backpackers in the tent next to us.
After our sleepless night, we hopped aboard the free shuttle to the port to meet the shuttle to the hotel we were booked at for that night. The owner of Maki’s Place greeted us at the shuttle and quickly whisked us away to the hotel which happened to be almost directly across the street from the port. His father, a bit of a curmudgeon, checked us in, all the while letting us know that we got a really good deal in the room (90€ it would normally be 150€) and that one night stays were pretty much the bane of his existence. Ok, we get it – we got a deal. Thanks for letting us know. Once checked in, we made our way to our room and it was adorable! The beds were hard as concrete – again. I began to wonder if concrete slabs as beds were a thing in Greece.
The pool at Maki’s Place was unbelievable…so deep touching the bottom was a struggle.
The beds may have been hard as rocks, but everything else was perfect. The pool was located just outside our room. It was clean and deep and beyond refreshing. After checking in and exploring the hotel, we changed out of our stinking and sweaty clothes and hopped in the sea bus to the old port in Mykonos Town. The sea bus cost 2€ and offered great views of the island as we made our way there.
Sightseeing and photo snapping in Mykonos
Once in Mykonos Town we stopped in a few shops bought some bathing suits we didn’t need, some Havaianas we didn’t need and some food and wine that we definitely did need! We walked through the small winding streets popping in and out of shops and snapping pictures of streetscapes and cats along the way.
Little Venice, Mykonos, Greece
I really wanted Emma to see Mykonos from the top of the hill and convinced her to climb the stairs to one of the vantage points above the town. It was so worth it! After having our fill of stairs and picture taking we headed back to our hotel for a swim, cocktails and dinner. Our last night on Mykonos was pretty unadventurous but it ended with dinner and wine on a deck overlooking the water so not bad at all.
Panorama from the top of Mykonos…well worth the climb
The next morning we checked out of our room and the curmudgeon who’d checked us in the day before had transformed into a funny and personable guy, I guess the people checking in that day had paid full price and were staying for multiple nights. Good for him, I ain’t mad at him. 🙂
Paros – “The Best Island” for shopping:
We arrived in Paros by ferry 2 days ago, hot, sweaty, stinky puddles – formerly human, now feral – and in desperate need of a shower and clean clothes. So our usual state, basically. The Stella Hotel where we are staying is the best place we’ve stayed at so far and at 89€ for 2 nights, it’s a bloody steal! We have a balcony overlooking the sea, a bathroom with a full on stand up shower and ACTUAL MATTRESSES ON THE BEDS. They have springs and everything!
Our first day in Paros we explored the town a little, had lunch on the water – we ordered a mixed plate of appetizers and it was perfect. Various Greek dips and octopus salad with beer, of course. After lunch we stopped by the supermarket to pick up some food stuff like meats, cheeses, tomatoes, grapes and some canned stuffed grape leaves, just in case we were peckish later. Oh and we also bought a 1.5L bottle of wine for bargain price of €2.30. C’mon you know you were wondering! 🙂
Beers on the water, first thing we did in Paros – Shocking!Mixed Greek appetizer platter, with hummus, fava, spicy eggplant, spicy cheese, octopus saladFried Haloumi, Emma’s favourite!
When we got back to the hotel we napped for a bit then snacked on the stuff we bought earlier as we watched the sun set from our terrace. After polishing off half the salami and tomatoes, along with the entire bottle of wine (to be fair this was over a period of several hours) we showered, dressed and then hit the town. It may be a small place, but they have a great bar scene.
We stopped at Entropy, it was rated as the #1 attraction on the island, according to TripAdvisor.
It was pretty easy to find, thanks to my phone GPS. We walked in and there were all of 7 people in the bar, including the owners and the bartender. The first thing i noticed was the haze of cigarette smoke that filled the air. There were two young guys playing beer pong while the other patrons watched and cheered them on. We checked out the cocktail menu, and ordered a drink. Emma had the Wrong Island Ice Tea and I had the Tangerine Dream. They were both ok. We had high expectations for this place, given its high rating on TripAdvisor and I have to say we were disappointed. The owners were friendly and we chatted with them while we finished our drinks, but had zero desire to stick around – my eyes were watering and I felt like every breath was a direct drag off of someone’s ciggy, so we left as soon as we were done our drinks.
We walked around the neighbourhood and discovered this really cool, tiny bar on one of the rooftops over looking the waterfront. The place was packed with people of all ages and the music was pretty good, a very relaxed vibe. We ordered proscecco and settled in at one of the tiny tables to people watch for a bit.
After our proscecco, we walked along the water back to our hotel.
Of note, there are a lot of great shops in Paros and they’re open until quite late, around midnight. You can find pretty much anything you’re looking for and at a reasonable price.
The next morning, we were up early to grab breakfast, shop and then hop the ferry to Antiparos where we would visit the caves and relax at Soros Beach.
The winds were high that day my friends and the sea angry. The ferry ride felt like a roller coaster ride. The ferry chugged along the water as large waves crashed up against it in all directions, tossing us from side to side. There were several occasions during the ride where the passengers screamed – in delight or fear – probably about 50/50. One poor girl came and sat outside at the back of the ferry next to us, seasick.
View from the ferry as we crossed over to AntiparosScene from our ferry crossing to Antiparos
Now the ferry ride normally takes about 10-15 minutes, but it took over 30 minutes that morning. 30 minutes of nausea inducing waves, bobs and rolls. We were very happy to have survived the crossing without puking over the side of the boat.
As soon as we arrived at the port we hopped the bus to the caves and Soros beach (6€ return fare).
I have to admit that I wasn’t expecting much, but they were pretty amazing. The descent (411 steps) into the bottom of the caves was easy and the view was awesome. The caves are comprised of 3 chambers with a total depth of 100m. The entire cave visit took about an hour and I snapped a ton of pictures.
Entrance to St. John’s Caves, AntiparosInside the cave, absolutely breathtaking
Next we were off to Soros beach. The beach itself is not very large and the place was packed. The beach loungers are available to rent for the day for 30€, so fuck that! We’re laying on the sand! We opted to find a spot on the beach next to a tree – I mean, under a shrub – which offered a nice beach view and some shade. Sounds ideal right? Well, in theory yes, but the ‘free’ shelter was very crowded and though we did manage finding a spot, the view wasn’t so great. Yes, I was in the shade next to the beach but every time I looked up all I could see was some guy’s ‘plumber’s butt’. Manscaping hasn’t really caught on in Greece.
The 30 euros/day loungers and the shrub we took shelter under.
Despite the view challenges, we did enjoy the beach day. The water was crystal clear and so refreshing. I was sad to leave, but I knew there were many more beach days ahead of us.
The ferry back across was much smoother than our trip over earlier in the day.
Later that night, we had dinner on the water – like literally on the water – the waves were lapping against the table legs while we enjoyed grilled fish and chicken. It was a clear night and the lights of the island dotted the surrounding hillsides while the silhouettes of the boats in the harbour bobbed in the water in front of our table. It was a perfect final night in Paros.
Thank you all so much for the great feedback and questions I’ve received on the Prague blog post.
In order to answer your questions I thought it might be a good idea add an additional blog post on Prague and cover everything.
Some of you were interested in whether or not food and accommodations were reasonably priced and the answer is an unequivocal YES!
Our tour guide, Callum gave us the low-down on where to eat and what we should expect to pay. He referred to it as ‘The Callum Index’ (TCI) and we followed it to the letter.
The average cost of a 0.5L of draught beer in Prague is anywhere between 25-60 CZK and $1CDN=~19CZK so between $1.25-$3 each. Now, this is an average and if you’re eating and drinking in the ‘touristy’ areas of Prague (anywhere near the Old Town Square, The Charles Bridge, or the Castle) the prices will be in the upper range of that average. Now, according to the TCI no self-respecting Czech will pay more than 35CZK for a beer, so if you’re drinking at a place that charges more than that you’re in a tourist trap my friend. Additionally, a plate of traditional Czech Gulash should not cost you more than 159-189CZK and if it’s priced higher than that – again, tourist trap.
Emma and I had budgeted approximately $65 dollars or ~1200CZK a day for food, drink, excursions and transportation and we always had money left over. We didn’t skip meals and ate and drank a LOT! You’re best to ask where the locals eat if you’re looking for authentic food and good value. Our favourite spot was Krcma, just on the cusp of the touristy area near the Old Town Square. We both had appetizer, entrees and beer and it only cost us about $15/each. The portions were enormous and the food was delicious.
As for our accommodations, we stayed in a pretty dodgy place, at a cost of about $19/night each but the city has many really nice and reasonably priced hotel rooms. We’re just cheap. For $100-$120/night you can expect to find a pretty decent room.
Prague is a photographer’s dream there are so many sights, interesting characters and super cool pockets of the city to discover. The city is very safe so I would encourage to grab your camera and explore. We wandered around the winding streets day and night and discovered so many interesting buildings, statues, art installations and people, all of which increased this city’s cool factor a hundredfold. I snapped more pics in Prague then anywhere else so far and I can’t wait to get home and print some of them!
Now, what would my post be without another little story about Prague. The Czechs appear to be huge fans of ‘defenestrations’ (throwing people or things out of windows). There were two defenestrations in Prague of huge historical significance and impact.
The first happened on July 30, 1419 when a group of radical Hussite followers killed 7 members of their city council by storming the town hall and throwing them out of a window. This eventually led the Hussite wars.
The second defenestration took place in 1618 and it led to the Thirty Years war.
There were many subsequent defenestrations in Prague including the 1948 defenestration of Jan Masaryk, then Minister of Foreign Affairs.
So be warned, if you get into an argument with someone while in Prague, make sure you’re on the ground floor!
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