Greece Part 2

I know, I know, you have been eagerly waiting for this. The trip feels so long ago, I can't believe it was just a week and a half ago since we got back! We really had to jump right back into the real world of work (okay..and hanging out and drinking tea and going to the gym).

Unfortunately we had just the late afternoon and evening in Thessaloniki because the next morning we took at train at 7 to Athens, and we arrived there early afternoonish. We decided to buy our tickets back to Istanbul from there (okay, so we forgot in Thessaloniki) and much to our dismay there was no space for us to leave on Thursday, so we had to leave a day earlier, cutting a day out from our time in Athens, but I have to say I was really relieved so I had a full day to recooperate (5 nights, 4 different beds) before going back to work. And I think we still had enough time in Athens, I didn't feel too rushed, and I hope to go back, especially for some island hopping!

Our first afternoon/evening there we mostly just walked around Plaka, a cute yet touristy area, and investigated the entrance to the Acropolis (REALLY hard to find, considering how famous it is!).



Men sitting and drinking tea and playing backgammon - feels like Turkey!



Looking up a cute street. In the foreground you can see some evil eyes, another Turkish tradition.



Some cute chairs we quickly sat in just to get a photo in.



No trip to Greece is complete without pork souvlaki and a gyro!

The next morning we visited the Acropolis, and we really did hit it at the right time of the year. It was warm but not too too hot and not too crowded. If we came much earlier it wouldn't have been as pleasant of an experience.



I've actually been in Athens before many years ago and just for a few hours and I was really really sick but the one thing I remember is that there was sprawl EVERYWHERE.













We were pretty tired after visiting it so we went to the National Gardens nearby and sat and had a cold drink, it was really nice and sweet.





The next day before we left on the train we went up that hill in the distance. No joke. It was a really nice walk, lots of nature and benches that had nice views.



Crazy huge aloe? plants. I felt like I had been shrunk.



There was a monastery up there, nice place for it!







We had to take a train from Athens to Thessaloniki and then wait for about an hour for our next train to Athens, another 17 hour train ride where the first (dark) hour was spent without electricity and us shoving ham and cheese on crackers into our face. The train was different and I was scared to sleep up so high because there was no barrier and it was a pretty shaky train. But it was fun and cute.

I really didn't mean to go on so long about the trip, but I really had a great time and I wanted to have the memories and itinerary in written form. Greece is a really interesting, beautiful and friendly country and I hope to return soon. I'm so thankful to have had a great travel companion too! Thanks everyone for following, again, sorry it went on a little long!

Greece! Part 1

Last week I had 5 days off because of the Kurban bayram, or the sacrifice festival. It's a really important holiday in Turkey and this year people had 9 days off (2 weekends and the bayram was from Monday-Friday)! It can be difficult and expensive to travel in Turkey during that time, and I looked at flights to visit some cities around Europe but they are also expensive, but my friend Anna mentioned going to Greece by train, which sounded like a lot of fun. And we did have fun - everything went really well - interesting sites, good food, perfect weather, nice accommodation, fun and relaxing train rides, and Anna and I got along really well, thank goodness. I think the only time we weren't together for the 6 days was when I used the internet downstairs one night, and she went and got tea for 5 minutes. Seriously, every minute we were together but it was fun!

We took an overnight train from Sirkeci, Istanbul to Thessaloniki. It was supposed to be only 12 hours, getting us into Thessaloniki at 9:30 in the morning but it was 5 hours late so we really didn't have much time in Thessaloniki because early the next morning we went to Athens. The train was a lot of fun, we both have always wanted to ride on an overnight train and it was nice just to relax, listen to music, eat, talk, and sleep.



Our train



Our compartment

Quick story - when we were waiting to get on the train, these really tough looking guys - leather jackets, gold chains, pot marked faces - were speaking really urgently to the ticket guys in front of the train, gesturing and standing really close. I saw one of the conductors ripping up a piece of paper. We then saw them loading really heavy black duffel bags into EACH wagon, so naturally we assumed it was dead bodies or drugs, and we were seriously creeped out. But I figured out at the end of the ride that they were probably delivering the sheets and pillowcases. Oops.



Good night! It wasn't uncomfortable but the sheets felt a little soggy and we had to keep waking up to give our passports when we left Turkey, then collect them, then they had to peek at our baggage, then enter Greece and give our passports again, then wait for them to be returned.






Thessaloniki was a really really nice city - a lot of waterfront, bike paths, gardens, nice little cafes, squares with nice architecture around it. I'd definitely return, it was nice and calm.



We ate in a good restaurant called Ouzou Melathron, where we had a delicious Greek salad and I had some PORK!!



The cheese you see on the left side of my plate was sooo good - it was grilled feta and it was so soft and warm and with just enough oil and herbs. Ahh so good!



We stayed at a place that was a bit different - it was called The Backpacker's Refuge and it wasn't technically a hostel, but more like a flat with just 6 dorm-like beds. They couldn't charge us but just asked for a recommended donation of 15 euros. There was a cute living room, small kitchen, bathroom, and wireless. It's a cool idea and it was started up by a brother and sister that wanted to provide reasonably priced housing for travelers. Anna is thrilled to be in the photo. I think I took this at 5:30am before we left for our train.

Views from the train going to Thessaloniki







Here's a sneak peek for what's to come in Greece! Part 2:

Bowling

Not much to report from this week, just been busy working and exercising and hanging out with various people. Last Friday there was a Wall Street event, we met at the nearby mall and went bowling. This was one of those things I was at first not really looking forward to but it turned out being better than I thought it would be. More people turned up than I expected, probably about 15-20 students were there. I think they also had fun, which is important.



My team







Next week is the kurban bayram, or the sacrifice festival, another important time for Muslims. I have FIVE days off of work! I wasn't sure what to do at first; I looked into visiting different cities in Europe but it was soo expensive, and it's also expensive and crowded to travel in Turkey then. Anna was planning to go to Athens by way of overnight train so I'm going to tag along with her! It's the perfect solution. We get to escape from the crowds and blood of the holiday in Turkey (most Turks have 9 days off!) but not spend too much money. I will miss Turkey but it will be fun to eat some Greek food and see some different sites! I'll try to update while I'm there but don't worry if not. Take care!