Athens, Greece
21st March 2002 - 6th April 2002
22 March 2002
Hi you guys
Well... we finally made it to Athens. Had a great trip with Emirates.. highly recommend it!!! Unfortunately we were delayed for 6 hours in Dubai and nobody told us what was going on or how long we were going to be delayed for so we all sat around like dorks waiting. Could have gone on a sight seeing trip instead.
I got no sleep on the plane.. Rob got lots.. used me as a pillow and stretched out in comfort... oooh the things one has to do as a wife:)
We arrived in Athens around lunch time and grabbed a taxi to my folks place, they have a nice one-bedroom apartment in an area called Agios Artemios. It's very close to everywhere basically and the perfect place to use as our base for this trip.
Kat's parents' place in Agios Artemios, Athens .
We slept all day yesterday and only got out of bed late this morning. Have just arrived in down-town Athens to catch up with a friend of mine (Helen)... we are surrounded by the most amazing architecture... Rob, however, is more interested in the man on the corner doing card tricks for money... the things that amaze him boggle the mind:) Anyway, we're fabulous and should start sight seeing tomorrow....
Hope you are all well, write and tell us what you have all been up to. Miss you all
Lotsa hugs
Rob and Kat
27 March 2002
Just come back form visiting my grand mother in the village. She come out of hospital on the weekend, after having a pace maker put in. Glad to report she is doing marvelously and has at least another 20yrs or so up her sleeve :)
The village, a place called Kandila, was definitely an experience for poor Rob and I'll explain why in a little while ... just to keep the suspense going :) It is about 5 hours drive from Athens and as we did not have a car we took the bus. We were at the bus stop at the wee hour of 5.30 am and only left at 8.30am.
The trip was pleasant enough though and Rob got to see a lot of the country side. One of the highlights I think, was when we had to get off the bus and onto a ferry which was going to transport us across the ocean to the other side. There were a zillion other buses there, not to mention cars and trucks. Greece is not a very organised country (as we believe in freedom of expression and free will...) so there was pandemonium. People everywhere!!! We had to keep a real close eye on which ferry boat our bus was on so that we could get on the correct one or otherwise we would be left behind.
People milling around at the port of Rio Rob on the ferry
Glad to report that we got on and off without a hitch... I am an expert you see and have done this many a time..:)
Kandila probably has about 800 people and only got electricity in 1978. My grandmother still has an "outhouse" instead of a real toilet and if you want to have a hot shower you have to boil water and tub wash. It is better in summer because they have a barrel on the roof of the outhouse and the water gets warmed by the sun. Alas though, we were still at the tail end of winter and it was a bloody cold weekend.
Lucky for us, my aunts and uncles who also live on the huge farm plot, have indoor bathrooms with hot and cold running water and the turn of a tap: )
View of Kandila village from a distance
Let me explain how this works.... my grandmother had 6 children: 2 of them live overseas, 1 daughter lives in a neighbouring town and the other 3 children (sons) all have houses on the same plot of land. So when you go visiting you start of at the house you're staying at and move your way up. This way you get fed at least 4 times at every meal!
We arrived at the village around lunch time and this is where Rob's education about the villages of Greece begun... poor thing! Not only did he have to put up with an over abundance of slobbery kisses from my 70 or so relatives but had to try and understand and answer all the questions that everyone was throwing his way.. hehehe. Good thing I'm a great translator!
After the first day Rob was already beginning to get bored, so I organised for him to be taken up the mountains for some sightseeing. One thing that Greece sure has an abundance of is mountains. This gave me a chance to catch up with my relatives whom I hadn't seen in over 7 years and especially my grandmother or Yiayia (in Greek)
My Yiayia and me
The rusty van used to take Rob mountain climbing Rob with Thanasi and George
Tiny church in the mountain that they took my poor Rob to..:)
We ended up staying till Wednesday. It was the 25th March celebrations (Independence day) and the school kids marched, danced and recited poems in the local square. Our goddaughter, Kostandina, was also participating and she was great!! She was besotted with her "nouno" (godfather) and decided to not only teach Rob how to Greek dance but also to how to speak Greek. Let me tell you... it provided hours of amusement :)
Thanasi, Lefteri & Kostandina in traditional Greek costumes The kids marching to the square
We left he next day and although it was sad leaving (for me anyway), we would be returning later on in the summer for an extended visit. Anyway, we were getting itchy feet to start planning the next part of the trip....can't wait!
See you guy in a few days time....
1 April 2002
Just checking in to see if everybody is alive and well......well??? are you guys alive and well?? hmm??
We're recovering from a pretty hectic night at the bouzoukia last night, where we saw Parios and Remos (famous Greek singers) and yes.. you guessed it.. Rob is suffering a hell of a lot more than me. If you're wandering what the hell bouzoukia are, let me tell you: It's like a Greek night club only they have live performers and you sit a a table. They usually start around 1 am and finish around 6 am. You don't pay an entrance fee but you do have to buy a bottle of spirits for every 4 people at the table. The drinks are ridiculously expensive but you have no choice.. wanna watch singer.. must buy bottle of alcohol!
We ended up paying A$150 per bottle of Johnny Red (we get it from the shop for A$25) and there where 12 of us. There is only a very small dance floor, usually on the stage were the singers are doing their thang and they usually invite the crowd to join them near the end of their performance but you can dance in the aisle or on the tables if you want to. We went with Helen, Spero and a whole lot of other people and had a fabulous evening. Even Rob enjoyed the Greek singers, had way too much scotch and most definitely did NOT behave himself:)
Parios singing at the Bouzoukia
Kat and her best friend Helen Kat and her cousin Spero
We finished around 6.30 in the morning and Spero took us straight to a restaurant for some tripe soup to settle the stomach... needless to say Rob, the adventurous, had stewed beef.. hehehe
We're doing great and are getting ready for a week-long trip to Peloponnesus. Rob has been studying maps like crazy and we have our route plotted to a 't' .. hehehe lets see if we'll stick to it. This is like a practice run for Europe.
Anyway, hope this all makes sense 'cause I'm also suffering from a bit of a hangover!
Probably won't write for a while 'cause we'll be in the boondocks and don't know if there's internet or not but we'll keep you informed..... don't worry!!! Promise we will not disappear:)
Wish me luck!!! Rob's too chicken to drive so it will be up to me....yeeehaaaaaaa.!!!