Greece Trip Journal from July 01 to 15, 2006.

Last updated July 28, 2006.

Country: Greece

Duration: July 01 to 15, 2006

Distance Traveled in the Country:  ~ 2300 km

Memorable Impressions of the Country:  Greece has a definite European feel to it now and with that, all the pro's and con's.  The old Greece can still be found in small mountain villages, where old grandma's dressed in black work in their garden and grandpas ride the scooter to the bakery.  Unfortunately this is rapidly disappearing with the new generation.  By becoming part of the EU, prices have taken a steep hike and most tourists who came here in the past before the Euro are a bit disappointed.  Nevertheless Greece has some very important ancient archeological sites and the most impressive and well kept museums we have seen so far.  If you want isolation don't make Greece your holiday destination as every significant ancient Greek site is overrun by organized tours.

Gasoline Cost: approx. $1.55CDN/litre for 95 Octane

Camping Cost:  between $21.00 to $28.00CDN/night.

Food & Drink Cost: Cola Light is around $1.80CDN for 500ml.  A Greek Salad went for $8.00CDN.  The non-touristy towns were a little bit cheaper. But overall some pricing was more then in Canada. 

Exchange Rate: 1 Euro = $1.40CDN

July 01, 2006.  Happy Canada Day.  Our original plan was to enter Greece after seeing Macedonia, but after not being able to enter Macedonia due to the Visa issue, we ended up unexpectedly crossing the border from Bulgaria at Promahorus into Greece.  This was our easiest border crossing ever.  It is harder for us to go into the United States from Canada then it was into Greece.  We were not asked for insurance on the motorcycles and just received an entry stamp into our passports.  From the border crossing we follow the E79 highway to Thessaloniki and turn onto the toll Autobahn E75/E90 which travels along the Aegean Sea coast line.  Riding through several huge thunderstorms we decide to set up camp at the Olympos Beach at Plaka, which is part of the Sunshine Camping Club and cost 22 Euro/night.  Camping in Greece is not cheap and they nickel and dime you for everything.  How they arrive at the cost of a campsite is by charging per person, per motorcycle and per tent. Average price for per person is 5.50 to 7.50 Euro, per tent is 4 to 6 Euro and the motorcycles are 2 Euro each. The days of cheap accommodation and meals are over.

July 02, 2006.  A day of making miles, from Plaka we take the E75/E90 south, past Larisa to the outskirts of Athens.  Even through the map indicates an Autobahn, large sections through canyon and mountains are single lane/two way traffic.  The toll booth charge 1 to 2 Euro per motorcycle approx. every 50 to 100kms.  Approx. 50km before Athens we turn east toward Marathonas and take a twisty country road through small villages and across Marathona Lake.  The narrow causeway crossing the dam is made out of white Pentelic marble.  Just south of Marathonas at N. Makri we stay at a run down campground for 20 Euro/night, which includes a 20% discount. 

July 03, 2006.  A day of reorganizing, researching the route through Greece and washing clothes.

July 04, 2006.  To avoid the morning rush hour traffic in Athens, we leave our campsite at 6:30am and ride into the heart of Athens.  Do I ever love GPS!  Since entering Greece we have switched from the World Map to the Europe Map.  The GPS Maps for Eastern Europe are still vague with the exception of the city of Athens.  Within 45 minutes we were parked in front of the Acropolis without getting lost once.  At the centre of Athens on top of the Acropolis rock, sits the famous Acropolis, built in the mid 5th Century BC and dominated by the Parthenon. The sky is overcast with dark blue thunderous clouds and occasionally the sun peaks through the clouds to light up the ancient structures. The advantage of being this early at a site is that we of course beat the tourist rush.  From the ticket office (12 Euro admission/person) we head straight for the Theatre of Herodes  Atticus (built 161AD).  Most of Greece's archeological sites are limited access for tourists, meaning that none of the building can be entered and roped off.  We have been lucky on our travels through the Middle East to have had access to all the ancient sites without restriction. Okay maybe with the exception of Egypt. The Propylaia is currently going through some major restoration, as was the Temple of Athena Nike.  Most of the Acropolis looked more like a construction site then an ancient city.  Even the Parthenon (built 447BC) had two (2) huge cranes sticking out of the centre.  The only consultation was that there were not a lot of tourists around yet.  We descend the Acropolis past the Shrine of Asklepios and Theatre of Dionysos (built in 342 to 326BC).  South of the Acropolis lies the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the largest temple in Greece. Only 15 of its original 104 huge (17m high) columns remain standing. Work on the temple started in the 6th Century BC. Right beside a busy road and the Temple of Olympian Zeus stands the Hadrian's Arch. Continuing in our exploration around the Acropolis, we take a peak at the Kallimarmaro Stadium, the marble structure can seat up to 60,000 spectators and was used in the first modern Olympics in 1896. The stadium sits on the site of the Panathenaic Stadium which was built in 330 BC.  To the north of the Acropolis lays the ancient agora which dates back to 600 BC.  The Stoa of Attalos was rebuilt to its original grandness in 1953 to 1956.  It now houses a museum and gives an excellent example of what a portion of this empire used to look like.  The best preserved temple in the agora is the Temple of Hephaisteion, built in 449 to 440BC.  Finally, we hike up the Filopappos Hill and visit the Monument of Philopappus. Returning to the motorcycles, we ride through a maze of roads to the National Archaeological Museum and park on the sidewalk. The National Archaeological Museum (7 Euro admission/person) is one of the World's best museums and contains some of the most priceless artifacts.  Laid out very well and labeled in both Greek and English, it makes us wonder why the Egyptian Museum in Cairo is in such poor condition.  Even the smallest artifact has an explanation.  The museums size is perfect and makes for an easy viewing without getting overpowered and tired.  Some of the highlights were the Harp Player sculpture (3rd millennium BC), the Mask of Agamemnon (gold death mask found at Mycenae dating to mid-1600s BC), the bronze statue of Youth of Antikythira and the marble sculpture of Aphrodite and Pan to name a few.  Satisfied that we had accomplished seeing the important aspects of Athens we return to our campsite.

July 05, 2006.  From our campsite at N. Makri (Athens), we make our way through Athens, getting lost only once, on the main Autobahn to the Peloponnese, the enormous Peninsula of Greece. Our destination is Ancient Mycenae.  The campground, Atreus, lays at the entrance to Mycenae and has large shaded treed areas, excellent facilities and a swimming pool for 15 Euro ($20CDN)/night.  We decide to make this home for a couple of nights as we explore the surrounding ancient sites.  After an afternoon snooze, we decide to venture to the fortified palace complex of Mycenae (8 Euro admission/person).  Mycenae arose from the Bronze Age (1700 to 1100BC) and its civilization abandoned the complex by 1100BC.  We enter through the Lion Gate, erected in the 13th Century BC.  The site and structures resemble another site we had visited in Turkey called Hattusa. To the right of the Lion Gate is the Grave Circle A, which contained six (6) royal family shaft-graves and 19 bodies.  The secret stairway in the north east corner of the fortified complex, drops 99 steps to a underground cistern. Unfortunately we had forgotten our LED lights.  Situated at the southern end of the site is the Treasury of Atreus.  One of the only two double-chambered tombs in Greece and dating from the 14th Century BC, it has a 36m dromos flanked by dressed stone.  A 9m long lintel stone stands over the entrance weighing almost 120 tonnes. To this day it is unknown how the Mycenaean lifted a stone of this size into place.  From Mycenae we ride to the sea side town of Nafplio and it's magnificent castle, which looms overhead.  Parking the motorcycle in the town square, we hike up the 910 steps to the top of Palamidi Citadel (4 Euro admission/person).  Mike actually did count the steps.  The Venetian citadel was built between 1711 and 1714 and is the largest such complex in Greece. The walls enclose seven (7) self-sufficient forts.  Of course we have to explore every corner of the citadel and what remains of the seven forts inside.  The view is incredible; the blue sea lies below with the mountain range in the far distance.  This might be the best view in Greece and the pictures say it all.  A day of riding and exploring ancient cities and citadels, what else could one want.  Exhausted we fall into our cozy tent.

July 06, 2006.  We leave the tent set up at the Atreus Campground in Mycenae and travel to Ancient Corinth (6 Euro admission/person).  Located at a strategic spot on a narrow isthmus between the Saronic and Corinthian gulfs.  The ancient city used to have 750,000 inhabitants, prospering from the transportation of ships across the shortest route between the Mediterranean to the Adriatic and Italy. The highlights of this site are Temple of Apollo with seven (7) standing columns remaining and the Temple of Octavia.  The Lechaion Way and its marble paved road, which once linked the port of Lechaion with the city, is still visible.  The ruins of the Peirene Spring fountain's to this day supply the local village.  The on-site museum contains some of Greeks best provincial artifacts, including the mosaic of Bacchus (2nd Century AD) and two impressive Phrygian prisoners statues/columns.  Just to the south of Ancient Corinth, high on a hill lays Acrocorinth.  The ruins at Acrocorinth are supposed to be the largest Roman township in Greece.  We ride our motorcycles up the west side of the hill and enter via foot through the three consecutive gateways of the fortress.  The fortress wall spans over a 5km circuit. Continuing to climb up the mountain we make it first to the Venetian tower in the southwest corner and then to the northeast summit with its scant foundations of an Aphrodite temple.  As the guide book indicates the view from this location is incredible and on a good day one can see 60km in every direction.  From the ancient hill top city we head 80km south to Epidaurus, famous for its well preserved theatre.  The Sanctuary of Epidaurus (6 Euro admission/person) was a therapeutic and religious centre from 6th Century BC to 2nd Century AD and was dedicated to the healing god Asklepios.  The theatre is quite impressive and owes its intactness to its remote location.  Its masonry was never pilfered.  It also has the only surviving circular orchestra (stage) from antiquity.  The classical stadium lays in ruins and only a small portion of the stone seats remain.  This site takes a lot of imagination to make out any kind of ancient structures.  All in all, a good day of exploration in sunny and windy Greece.

July 07, 2006.  Saying good-bye to Mycenae, we enter the Greece we like.  Passing through Agros, we travel on the old national highway along the Aegean coast through Astros to Leonidi.  The deep blue sea, mountainous scenery, small Greek villages and the twisty roads are very peaceful.  At the seaside town of Leonidi we squeeze our way through narrow paved roads, wondering what would happen if another vehicle would come the other way.  Heading inland we climb up the mountain range, past the Elonis Monastery, stopping every few minutes to capture the incredible view with the camera.  We reach 1200m and make numerous wrong turns through small Greek villages as signage goes back to the Cyrillic lettering.  As we ride through narrow steep streets, we question ourselves “Is this really the right way?”.  The roads we are on are not indicated on the GPS, but we are enjoying the ride and scenery.  At Geralki we take the long way around road by accident, which in the end still leads us to our destination via Ag. Dimitrios.  As we approach the coastal town of Monemvasia, we are in full view of the “Gibraltar of Greece”.  The ancient town of Monemvasia lays on a steep rocky cliffed mountain, which was severed from the mainland by an earthquake in 375AD.  4km south is the Paradise Campground for 19.30 Euro/night.  Here we meet a Dutch couple on a Moto Guzzi and hook up again with Els and Wim a Belgium couple, traveling in a rental car the same route as us around the Greek Peninsula. Late afternoon we ride to the fortified town of Monemavasia on the so called “Gibraltar of Greece” rock.  Cars or motorcycles can't enter the walled town, since the roads are too narrow and are stepped cobble stone.  Monemvasia was in its prime around the 15th Century AD, when 50,000 inhabitants called it home. The upper town of Monemavasia now lies in ruins and the last occupant left in 1911.  The lower part of the town has been rebuilt to its original state and is enclosed by the 16th Century walls spanning 900m and 30m in height.  We enter through the western gate and instantly travel back to the medieval times.  A pleasant surprise.  We wander the narrow cobble stone streets, churches and ancient houses are well signed and give historical information.  In the center of the lower town is the restored 13th Century Cathedral Christos Elkomenos, turning directly north stands the façade of a 18th Century Church called Panagia Myrtidiotissa.  The wooden carved windows giving it a different look.  Winding our way up hill through the narrow streets we zigzag up the cliff face to the upper town through the tower gate and its iron slats.  The upper town was first fortified in the 6th Century AD and is the oldest part of Monemvasia.  Most of it is now in ruins, with the exception of the Agia Sofia Church.  The Church is very well preserved and has a 16-sided dome and is situated on the edge of the northern cliff.  The remains of a large cistern system are still visible as well and the ruins of the 13th Century Fortress.  Returning to the lower town we explore the eastern wall and gate past the Panagia Chrysafitissa Church.  Walking along the southern wall we approach the sea through the sea gate and watch the waves break against the rock and splash salty sea water over the ancient walls.  Outside the gated town we run into a guy from Cyprus who excitingly tells us about his BMW 650 and is goals of purchasing a BMW R1200GS.  Back at the campsite we cook our supper and hang out with Els and Wim the Belgium couple.

July 08, 2006.  From Monemvasia we head through Skala over Sparti to Mistras. A short day for us with only 95km of riding.  We set up camp at the Castle View Campground for 20 Euro.  Late afternoon we head to the entrance of the lower town of majestic Mystras (5 Euro admission/person), a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Mystras consists of an upper and lower town and is linked by the Monemvasia Gate.  At the summit of the hill sits the Kastro.  It was founded by the Franks in 1249 and then taken over by the Byzantines, who influenced most of the architecture of the remaining churches and buildings.  It is an excellent hike to explore all the existing churches.  It took us a good three (3) hours to see it all.  From the main gate we head to the Ayios Dimitrios (Metropolis), built around 1291 and at that the oldest Church in Mystras.  It has some important wall-paintings. Next on the path to the summit is the Evangelistria Church, a small elegant church with funerary annexes.  Then the Ayioi Theodoroi Church, which sits opposite the Hodigitria Church.  All Churches have beautiful vaulted arched interiors with partial paintings (some better then others).  Half way up the hill we pass through the Monemavasia Gate to the upper town and visit the Ayios Nikolaos Church.  The Despots' Palace is being reconstructed and access limited.  The Ayia Sophia Church, is the highest surviving church on the hill.  Preserved monograms of the founder can be found inside the church and the wall paintings include an impressive monumental representation of Christ in the apse. At last we reach the Kastro, flanked by sheer ravines to the south and west. It offers some excellent panoramic views of the lower and upper town. On our hike down we pass the Pantanassa Church, dating to 1428 and the last church built in Mystras.  It is the most impressive and elegant Church and can be seen from far away.  Tucked away in the south corner of the lower town against a rock face, sits the 14th century monastery of Peribleptos. Definitely one of the nicer ones easily missed.  Exhausted again we head back to our campsite, where we meet Richard from England on his Armstrong. Over a beer we exchange stories about the Middle East and India.

July 09, 2006.  The 66km road and scenery from Mystras to Kalamata is simply spectacular.  From Kalamata he head north and then west to meet up with the coastal highway E55.  We arrive in Olympia in good time and choose to stay at the Diana Campground for 18 Euro/night.  We escape the heat by lazing around the pool. In the evening a couple, Tomas and Ursula, from Hungary on a Honda Goldwing set up camp beside.

July 10, 2006.  From our campground we walk to the ruins of ancient Olympia (9 Euro admission/person including the museum).  On Monday the museum doesn't open until 12:30pm.  We are at the site by 8am and have the place to ourselves.  We are even able to have breakfast in front of the Temple of Zeus without any other tourists in sight.  Of course that doesn't last very long and by 10am thousands of bright colored individuals take over every part of the place. Ancient Olympia is of significance to Mike, due to his Triathlon and Ironman background.  The history is quite interesting.  The first recorded Olympic games were in 776BC and continued regularly until 393AD when they were banned by Theodosius I.  The modern Olympic games were re-indicated in 1896 in Athens.  The archeological site of Olympia was flattened by an earthquake.  Some of the columns of the Philippeion have been reconstructed. The stadium entrance, with a portion of the vaulted ceiling, remains to this day.  All that remains of the Temple of Zeus is the steps leading into the temple and one reconstructed pillar.  Beside the temple lay the tumbled columns, as if someone had neatly cut them in pieces.  A lot of the columns surrounding the training center have been reconstructed and the clover-shaped water-garden of the Leonidaion is still visible.  In the town of Olympia we walk to the Museum of Modern Olympic Games (2 Euro admission/person) and spend a good hour looking and reading about the history of the modern games.  There is even a display of the Montreal games in 1976 and Calgary games in 1988.  We return to our campsite and hang out with a bus load of French kids at the pool.  In the evening we wonder over to the Olympia Archaeological Museum.  Most artifacts are from the excavation of Olympia and some of the sculptures are in excellent shape, like the Statue of Hermes and Zeus and Ganymede.  Greek museums are always very well laid out and labeled and include a reconstructed model of the ancient site.  They are quite interesting even if you are not a Museum type of person.

July 11, 2006.  We make our way back to the coastal hwy E55 and head north on the Peninsula.  A small detour into the town of Kastro and its' famous Frankish Castle takes us a couple of hours.  The castle sits on a hill and can be seen for miles as you approach.  Major restoration and excavation is in progress at the site and a small display in one of the rooms shows pictures of traditional Greek homes, now in danger of extinction due to modernization.  Back on the road we are in Patra in no time, taking the by-pass route around the city and across the newly built Rio to Andirrio bridge, which spans impressively across the Gulf of Corinth.  Motorcycles pay 2 Euro each, it is quite a bit more money for cars 10 Euro.  In Natpaktos we stop at Lidl (a mini Costco) and I roam the isles for some western food.  From here we continue on the coastal road E65 east along the Gulf of Corinth.  One of the bays we were unable to pass by without taking the switch-back road to the base and its' isolated beach.  Unfortunately there were no camping facilities. Another 33km onwards, we set up camp at Delphi Camping (18.90 Euro/night www.delphicamping.com), only 4kms from the ancient site of Delphi.  Our campsite is situated at the slopes of Mt. Parnassus, with one of the best panoramic views of the valley below and the Gulf of Corinth.  The wireless internet for only 3 Euro/day and a beautiful swimming pool with a killer view is an added bonus.  It's hard to go wrong with that, and the perfect place to update our Bulgaria Pictures and Journal. Here we also say a sad good-bye to Els and Wim from Belgium, who had taken the same route as us for the last 10 days.

July 12, 2006.  The morning sun had not yet peeked over the mountains as we arrive in Delphi.  We decide to visit the Delphi Museum first, which contains a magnificent colossal of Naxian Sphinx dating to 560BC. In addition it has the famous life size bronze Charioteer (478BC) and the sculpture of Three Dancing Girls grouped around a column.  It took a number of years for archeologists to reconstruct the column of the Three Dancing Girls, due to its massive size and complexity.  As we leave the museum we are engulfed by 100's of tourists all heading up the ancient site of Delphi.  No escaping the masses here.  The Scared Way, which used to be lined with up to 3000 statues, winds it way from the main entrance (market place) to the top of the hill the stadium.  The area is also called the Sanctuary of Apollo.  The Athenian Treasury (for the battle of Marathon victory) was reconstructed in 1906 and is a good example of what other Treasuries looked like.  The massive Temple of Apollo, has a few reconstructed columns on a large base with a steps leading to the entrance.  Next is the 5000 spectator theatre, built into the hill side.  At the end of the Scared Way lays the 7000 spectator stadium and, as such, the best preserved stadium in Greece.  The stadium is almost 200m long and most of its seats are intact.  Southeast of the Temple of Apollo a path leads, past the Castalian Spring, through the ancient baths to the Marmaria Precinct (Marble Quarry), where the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia is found.  After three (3) hours of exploration most tourists had left by the time we made our way to the Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia. Most postcards from Delphi illustrate the Sanctuary and the mountains in the background. Back at the campsite, it is pool time.  As the time in Greece is nearing the end, we try a Greek specialty white wine the Retsina, which has to be drunk chilled. The flavour comes from the Aleppo pine resin which is added in small quantities to the grape juice during fermentation.

July 13, 2006.  Saying good-bye to the Gulf of Corinth, we head inland over Amfissa, high into the mountains, zig-zagging our way to Lamia on the Aegean Sea. Then the road climbs up another mountain pass by switch back after switch back and descends into the plains by Karditsa.  In Trikala we stop for an ATM visit and then approach the majestic mountain pillars of Meteora.  There is no shortage of campgrounds around Meteora.  We chose the Cave Campground (15 Euro/night) which lies at the entrance road to the hill top monasteries. The actual campground has seen better days, but the swimming pool is superb.  Earlier in the day we had seen a sign indicating 39 Degree Celsius and we mentioned that it wasn't that bad.  We have acclimatized to the heat, and anything below plus 30 Degree Celsius feels cold.  What will happen when we return to Canada?  Temperature must reach the mid 40 Degree Celsius in the afternoon, as we cool off every 5 minutes in the pool.  Late afternoon a Thunderstorm builds and misses us. The sun peaks out under the clouds as it sets and we take a ride up the sandstone towers and its six (6) remaining monasteries.  The lighting is perfect for pictures and we take almost two (2) hours.

July 14, 2006.  The monasteries do not open until 9am.  We head up at 8am to catch the morning sun light up the Monastery of Agios Nikolaos.  The Moni Rousanou perched precariously on the very tip of a narrow spire of rock, is the most photographed and we spend some time taking pictures.  By 9am we have counted about 15 packed tour buses making their way to the Great Meteoron Monastery.  After a ride to see the Agia Triada and Agios Stefanos Nunnery, we make our first visit the Moni Rousanou (2 Euro admission/person).  One crosses a couple of bridges to get to the entrance.  The Metamorfosis Church inside the boundaries of the monastery has some very colorful and graphic frescos illustrating dismembering of body parts. Pictures are not allowed to be taken in any of the Monastery Churches. From the Moni Rousanou we head to the Monastery of Varlaam (2 Euro admission/person).  Its entrance path leads over a bridge and then steps hugging the sandstone sides of the mountain wind its way to the entrance gate.  When originally built this entrance did not exist and monks were lifted or lowered via a winch from the Ascent Tower in a net. Standing in the Ascent tower and looking at the wooden winch, the rope and then down the steep tower into the gorge below, one wonders what crazy person would willingly be ascending or descending in a net from this height.  We were lucky as to witness a monk crossing the steep gorge in a box suspended on a couple of steel ropes (Mike calls it the Monkmobile).  We make the Megalo Meteoro (2 Euro admission/person) (also known as the Great Meteoron Monastery) our last visit.  The path leading to the entrance first tunnels its way through the mountain and then steps lead along the side of the mountain to the entrance gate.  At 623m, this is the highest Monastery in Meteora.  It also has an Ascent tower and a beautiful church in the centre courtyard, with excellent restored frescos.  The winery room contains a large wooden barrel and press with a great view outside.  A small room contains the skulls of deceased resident monks, which is a bit spooky. The premises contain three museums.  The war museum displays some excellent pictures of years past.  The other two (2) museums exhibit old bibles hand written by the monks, richly decorated blessing crosses and wine goblets. The Great Meteoron Monastery is the most informative and best accessible of all the monasteries in the area.  In late afternoon we take a walk to view the old town of Kastraki, which is located in caves with wooden ladders and balconies on the side of a steep towering mountain.  In the evening Werner and Luisa arrive on a BMW Airhead.  He is German, she is Spanish and they live in Ireland. Werner has been all over the World on his motorcycle and we ended up reminiscing about past trips and of course motorcycles over some Amstel beer.

July 15, 2006.  Our last day in Greece.  Our goal is to get into Albania.  The 110kms from Meteora to Ioannina are super twisty, we climb up to 1655m, double solid line for almost all of the 110kms.  Speed limits and double solid lines don't mean much in Greece as everyone wants to be at the destination yesterday.  No one slows down for villages and if you do, you get run over.  80km/hr is probably the slowest anyone ever goes through a village (sign posted at 40km/hr), it's just insane.  Pavement in Greece is also quite tricky, very hard to read, corners are often very slippery and it has given us some heart stopping moments where both the front and rear end gave away. Since Greece is a very mountainous country the roads are built for motorcycles, unfortunately the slippery corners are sometimes a bit of a problem and it keeps you on constant alert. We want some new pavement!  From Ioannina it is only approx. 50kms to the Albanian border at Kakavije.  Checking out of Greece is easy with the customs clearance and exit stamp we approach Albania. (And a warning from the Greek Officials to look out for the Albanian Police!!!)

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