Sunday the 16th we took the morning train from Venazza, with a quick stop in Monterosso and then on to Milan. We were sitting on the platform in Monterosso congratulating ourselves on being early, and sitting exactly where our coach was expected to stop when we heard the announcement that the train to Milan was going to be on platform 2 in 5 minutes. This required a mass rush for everyone to go down and then up the 4 flights of stairs to get on the right platform. "This happens every day" the platform official said shaking his head! Note to self - time to buy smaller bags so we pack less!
After an overnight stop in Milan we flew to Athens Greece on Monday 17th. We had a free afternoon so after checking into the hotel we headed out for what should have been a delightful late & quiet sunset explore of the Parthenon. Unfortunately the area closes an hour earlier in September, and although we had our pre-purchased tickets in hand we were told to come back in the morning. Never mind, we enjoyed a pleasant walk around the outside and found a lovely little cafe to enjoy of course a gelato and cake!
We got up early the next morning determined to visit the Parthenon, so back up the hill and steps we went, with John muttering about being on a forced march. This time we were able to enter and were really glad we went back to explore. The Parthenon was constructed between 447 and 439 BC, and is also surrounded by other temples and theaters, all located on a rocky hill above the city. Collectively the area is called the Acropolis and is a UNESCO world heritage site. There is a major restoration effort ongoing to restore and repair the area, which is amazing well preserved for being over 2,000 years old!
That afternoon (Tuesday 18th) we returned to Athens airport for the short flight to the island of Santorini. Greece has thousands of islands in the Aegean and Ionian sea, with over 200 that are inhabited. Santorini is known for the iconic blue domes and spectacular sunsets over the caldera, a protected bay created by a volcanic eruption over 3,600 years ago.
We picked up our rental car and headed to our first hotel, and immediately realized Santorini is very busy, has small narrow roads full of cars, coaches, ATVs, scooters and pedestrians. We were really glad we had rented a small car, a sentiment we repeated numerous times, including when we scraped the wing mirror on an alley wall!
We arrived at our apartment to a very warm welcome. We found everyone in Greece to be incredibly friendly and helpful, which is impressive when we found the majority of people supporting tourism work 7 days a week for 10-12 hours a day. We loved Julie and Emma who ran our first apartment; for the next three days they gave us plenty of tips on where to explore and find the best photo locations.
We spent the next three days exploring different small towns, and also spent an afternoon on the beach. Santorini is very busy, especially when there are cruise ships in town, so we worked to find areas that were less crowded. We also fell into a pattern of getting up late, having breakfast, then heading out early afternoon to explore, have a large late lunch and then just desert in the evening. Quite a perfect approach really!
We picked up our rental car and headed to our first hotel, and immediately realized Santorini is very busy, has small narrow roads full of cars, coaches, ATVs, scooters and pedestrians. We were really glad we had rented a small car, a sentiment we repeated numerous times, including when we scraped the wing mirror on an alley wall!
We arrived at our apartment to a very warm welcome. We found everyone in Greece to be incredibly friendly and helpful, which is impressive when we found the majority of people supporting tourism work 7 days a week for 10-12 hours a day. We loved Julie and Emma who ran our first apartment; for the next three days they gave us plenty of tips on where to explore and find the best photo locations.
We spent the next three days exploring different small towns, and also spent an afternoon on the beach. Santorini is very busy, especially when there are cruise ships in town, so we worked to find areas that were less crowded. We also fell into a pattern of getting up late, having breakfast, then heading out early afternoon to explore, have a large late lunch and then just desert in the evening. Quite a perfect approach really!
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