If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning.

Our hotel has been noisy, every single night. People talking, running up and down the stairs, doors opening and closing…all night long. But when somebody started banging on our door in the middle of the night last night, it was too much. The first time it happened I was groggy and by the time I woke up, they had stopped. I was miffed because it had taken me at least one frustrating hour to fall asleep. I figured some drunk fool had forgotten a room number. I was almost asleep when it happened again. BANG BANG BANG! This pissed me off and I yelled out, “WHAT?!?!” in a very unfriendly tone. It stopped and I heard them knock on a few other doors. I’m not sure what it was about but I wasn’t about to open the door in the middle of the night for anyone, especially after our walk through druggieville the day before. That’s not a picture of our hotel, by the way. But if it was quieter I might have stayed there even if it did look like a haunted house.

We slept in as long we could and still get breakfast and then caught the metro to Syntagma Square. The 10am Sunday changing of the guard is a big deal with a marching band and a full platoon of Evzones dressed in their traditional kilts, tights, and pom-pommed shoes. These are the elite guards and world famous for not only their attire but for their unique march which involves many slow, high-sweeping choreographed kicks.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning.

For the first time on our trip, Greece welcomed us to a new day with cloudy skies. We walked to the corner in a light drizzle and dropped below street level to catch the metro. The red-line carried us to the Acropolis stop and as we climbed up the stairway to the surface, it was apparent to me that Poseidon had released a can of whoop ass on the city. I knew instantly it was my fault. This was his revenge.

The rain pounded the city in a constant chaotic roar. Water trickled down the stairs that climbed up to the street level like it was a small riverbed. Thunder rolled through the sky like Zeus and Poseidon were racing in massive chariots laughing heartily at my plans to explore the Acropolis.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning.

We said goodbye to our cute little room in Nafplio and departed for Athens. It isn’t a long drive, only a couple of hours if you drive straight through. We, of course, did not drive straight through. When I first told Mikayla we were stopping at the ruins of another ancient city, Mycanae, she was far from enthralled.

“Haven’t we seen enough ruins?”

“But those were Byzantine, Venetian, and Ancient Athenian ruins. Today we get to see Mycenaean ruins!”

That didn’t seem to help.

“The castle we hiked up to yesterday? That was 300 years old. These ruins today are over 3,500 years old! These are the people ancient Athenians called giants because they figured humans could not build the massive structures found in their abandoned cities. These are the people that, according to legend, built the Trojan horse and defeated the city of Troy. A fierce warrior-like people that vanished without a trace over 3,000 years ago. These are the people that Homer tells about in the Iliad and Odyssey, where Greek Mythology comes from…”

“Okay dad! I get it!”

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning.

In the early 1800’s, the port town of Nafplio was chosen to be the first capital of modern Greece. A major reason was the Palamidi, a baroque fortress (said to be the most well preserved in all Europe) that sits 1,000 steps above town atop the cliffs. The first thing on our agenda today was to climb to the top of the castle before the afternoon sun arrived.

But as it turns out, the fortress ended up being the second item our our agenda after “letting Mikayla’s hair dry.” So instead of waiting on the deck with Mikayla for the sunshine to do its job, I took the opportunity to walk through the quiet streets of Nafplio. Several shopkeepers were just opening, most were still closed tight, and most of the traffic I ran into had four legs, a tail, and no more than 9 lives. A coordinated journey crisscrossing through the streets and alleys quickly shrunk the town down to a manageable size. Last night our aimless meandering was fun but had not let me build an internal map.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning

I didn’t expect we would spend so much time driving in a country smaller than the state of Utah. Today we drove from Kardamyli, to Monemvassia, to Nafplio. I tried to remember our route and plug it in to Google which claimed it takes roughly six hours. I think we were slightly over that and I’m guessing my GPS had something to do with that.

If you zoom in on Google maps you can see how many of the roads that look straight are actually quite hairy (like this one). The formula from point A to point B must be multiplied by π (yes, that is the Greek symbol for pie) to account for all the switchbacks (and the funky TOMTOM GPS routing).

It may sound like I’m complaining, but I’m not. Most of our journey was through the mountains with gorgeous views where towns, people, and other motorists were few and far between. We saw a lot of beautiful country, stopped at little stores to grab snacks (like a yummy spinach pie), and were slowed by multiple encounters with sheep, goats, and cows. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Today was devoted to exploring the Mani Peninsula. It’s rugged landscape and brutal mountain ranges kept it inaccessible for thousands of years. It was these very traits that brought refugees, desperate to escape the invading Ottomans, to settle in the difficult terrain. The narrow and winding road down the coast connects coastal towns that for hundreds of years had only been reachable by ship. The area is remote and has a slower pace. In addition to a break from the heavy tourism of other areas, it offers Frankish castles, spectacular beaches, and majestic mountains.

The fast winding roads had me wishing for my motorcycle. Occasionally bikers would fly around the corner tucked forward and leaning so low their knees almost touched the ground like they were on a racing circuit. Someday it would be fun to come to Greece with my motorcycle pals and cover the country on two wheels.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Patience Warren. I believe that is what Zeus tried to teach me as we visited what his followers considered his most sacred sanctuary. This hill was the birthplace of Zeus and where is father, Kronos tried to eat him and prevent him from taking over the family God business. By visiting, I unwittingly subjected myself three trials that he administered by using my willing teenage daughter, as you shall soon see.

I always understood the high priority the ancient Greeks placed on spiritual and mental development (hence the temples, shrines, and Greek schools of philosophy). What I never realized is that the Olympic games weren’t anything like sporting events we have today. It was the Romans who changed and commercialized the Olympics. To the Greeks, the games were a deeply ritualistic, highly spiritual event held to honor the Father of the Olympian Gods, Zeus. Ancient Olympia is where the games were held and one of the most sacred, spiritual locations in Greek Mythology.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Today was a long, exhausting day of travel. It started with a sad goodbye to the bay that had been home for four days. Of course, we couldn’t go anywhere until after Mikayla had her morning coffee. Rather than rush us by trying to convince her to skip her morning ritual, I finally just accepted the fact that she doesn’t fully wake up until she gets her dose of caffeine. Once that happens, her eyes light up and she is non-stop chatter (which is fun). If Jack Bauer ever needed to interrogate her, all he’d need to do is give her coffee.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

My original agenda for today had us taking a drive up the northern part of the island, up the mountain, and to the eastern coast and the “Mini-Riveria.” The thought of more driving, however, seemed to turn Mikayla’s face green. Her preference was to go back to Myrtiotissa beach and have an easy relaxing day. So that’s what we did.

We took our time in the morning, had an extended chat at breakfast, and then left late in the morning for the beach. I wondered all night if I’d drive down the steep hill again. The angel on the right shoulder said, of course, “Don’t do it.” The little devil on the left didn’t say a thing, just smiled a wicked grin. I’m sure you know by now who won.

Read the rest of this entry »

If you didn’t start reading on Day 1, you might want to start from the beginning …

Last night Mikayla commented that she missed playing the piano and I suggested she go play the one in the lounge. The thought must have worked her over during the night because after breakfast she took a break and made that old out of tune monster sound really good. I sat in a nice comfy chair looking out at scenery that never gets boring, and she played some of my favorites. Several peeked in to see who was playing and one lady even clapped and yelled “Bravo!”

We left bright and early to explore the south end of Corfu. Our first stop was a beach that I had heard could be one of the best in the world, Myrtiotissa. It was actually pretty tricky to find. I felt like I was driving on a neglected, deserted road to an abandoned farm rather to a world class beach. Finally the road doubled back and dropped almost straight down to the ocean below and I could see I was in the right place.

Read the rest of this entry »