Crete...Athens

We didn’t know much about western Crete but decided to rent a car and explore for two days. Drove along heart-stopping cliffs dropping to blue sea below, while trying to dodge mountain goats and sheep littering the road.

Stopped at a monastery in Chrysokalitissas which had a squat toilet overlooking the sea.

And checked out the jellyfish-free beach of Elafonisi.

Stayed the next night in Sougia (pronounced Soo-yah), where in the distance, you could just make out Gavdos Island (Greece), the southernmost point in Europe.

Drove back along the cliffs amid a torrential wind. It wasn’t until visiting astounding ruins of Ancient Epta that we realized we were in the middle of a dust storm, quite common for them, but freaky for us. Sand blown from Libya and Tunisia makes all the way to Crete (as well as the mainland and Turkey we found out). The sun was blocked out and there was a chalky taste in our mouths and on our packs for the next few days.

Back to Spencer’s and he was gracious enough to take us to the ferry station and see us off for the night ferry from Souda to Athens (Pireas Harbor).

It was a Friday night so it was even crazier than usual. Throngs of people had staked out floor space with wall-to-wall sleeping bags in the middle chamber and most soft surfaces had already been claimed. We did find a spot in a hallway and went on deck which is where the party seemed to be.

We managed to get a few hours sleep and arrived in Athens on a Saturday Morning.

We saw ancient ruins in the middle of the city as well as an unbelievably transparent meat market with whole sheep (and parts) hanging, skinned from stall to stall for about a kilometer. There was also some fish.

Went to a party at a friend’s house that night. Constantinos was awesome to have us. Ordered in Souvlaki and chatted with friends through the night. Made it back before the subway closed at 12 since we were in a suburb.

Next day, went to the Acropolis and wandered around the city. Elpinini was so generous to let us stay with her and it was awesome to meet her and her friend Yodi. To top it off, her mother, Kiki, even cooked a wonderful traditional Greek dinner for us.A highlight was taking the incline train to see the magnificent midnight view from Lykavittos Hill.

The next morning we checked out Dionysis’ Theatre and Ancient Agora, before whisking ourselves to the airport (the last air travel for a while) for the quick flight to Milan. (this allowed us to see a day or two more of Crete and Athens). We got to the airport at 12 for our 12:50 international flight. They didn’t bat an eye, checked our packs and got our boarding passes. The flight left an hour late at 2pm.