This morning I went and took the Metro to the Port Pieraus. Where I boarded the ferry and I am now waiting for it to depart- Hopefully I am on the right one! I have asked several people and it appears to be the correct one! Ha ha- I didn't sleep at all last night- my cold was really a pain and I couldn't breath- and I was paranoid that I would miss the ferry and have to spend another night in the hostel! NOOOOOO! So I am sitting on the ferry deck-and I have already met some nice middle aged couples from Michigan who seem really nice! I like the hostels in the way that they have kids more around my age range (I did meet some cool friends at the hostel- but there are a lot of CRAZY people there as well) -however, I like the stability and maturity of the older people that I am around on the ferry! ( I have never been so happy to be sitting surrounded by a bunch of people in their 40s talking about mortgages and jobs and their kids!) After I met the middle aged couple I met some kids around my age (see picture); two girls from Germany- one is in the red coat in the picture- the other one was taking the picture. The guy is from Pakistan- but has family on Santorini- it was interesting to talk to them- they were a cool group and made the time pass faster!
Riding the Metro was nerve racking but was fine! Penny can you believe I didn't get lost at all! I did ask a car full of people if I was going the right way- and they gave me a priceless blank stare which was really wonderful! :) But here I am waiting for my ferry to depart! The ferry first goes to Naxos and then Santorini- We leave at 7:25 am and get there at ~3:00pm- so I will be on the boat all day! Then the hotel shuttle is supposed to pick me up at the port. It is then a 30 min car ride up to the hotel- the entire city is built along the cliff! Once I check in I am going to grab a bite to eat and then sleep a bit if I can- and then do some evening exploration!
Finally we landed in Athens around 4 o'clock- remember the boat took off at 7:25 from the port- so it has been a long day of traveling! Once you get of the boat there are swarms of tour groups meeting the people and hotel drivers everywhere holding up signs of people's last names it is quite tricky trying to find your group! Once I was in the shuttle van heading up the cliff to the hotel I could really relax. The drive up from the port is amazing- I took several pictures from the bus to try to capture the zig-zag of the road- the turns are so so sharp. The buildings here are boxy and white! I checked into my hotel- took a shower and then went for a short walk where I had dinner- gyros and went into a mini market type store to buy some snacks for my room- it has a little fridge in it- I got some fruit and some yogurt and bottled water of course (everyone says don't drink the water in Greece!)
Riding the Metro was nerve racking but was fine! Penny can you believe I didn't get lost at all! I did ask a car full of people if I was going the right way- and they gave me a priceless blank stare which was really wonderful! :) But here I am waiting for my ferry to depart! The ferry first goes to Naxos and then Santorini- We leave at 7:25 am and get there at ~3:00pm- so I will be on the boat all day! Then the hotel shuttle is supposed to pick me up at the port. It is then a 30 min car ride up to the hotel- the entire city is built along the cliff! Once I check in I am going to grab a bite to eat and then sleep a bit if I can- and then do some evening exploration!
Finally we landed in Athens around 4 o'clock- remember the boat took off at 7:25 from the port- so it has been a long day of traveling! Once you get of the boat there are swarms of tour groups meeting the people and hotel drivers everywhere holding up signs of people's last names it is quite tricky trying to find your group! Once I was in the shuttle van heading up the cliff to the hotel I could really relax. The drive up from the port is amazing- I took several pictures from the bus to try to capture the zig-zag of the road- the turns are so so sharp. The buildings here are boxy and white! I checked into my hotel- took a shower and then went for a short walk where I had dinner- gyros and went into a mini market type store to buy some snacks for my room- it has a little fridge in it- I got some fruit and some yogurt and bottled water of course (everyone says don't drink the water in Greece!)
On a mini exploration around the hotel- I saw a cool church- the type that you see in the standard photos of Santorini! Then I saw 3 guys briging a donkey train down the middle of the street! That was really cool!! The odd thing about Santorini right now is how vacant it is because it is not high season!- it really feels like a ghost town. I love my quaint little room that only cost me 35 E a night! It is perfect- compared to a hostel it is LUXURY! The bathroom is a bit like the hotel in Paris- maybe a bit smaller- but it seems lest dingy! I am going to bed here soon- I need to get up and see if I can get a bus to the red or black sand beaches. Then I need to catch a bus to Oia- (I think that is how you spell it) it is famous for its sunsets!
It is nice to be here 4 nights I can relax! and move at my own pace! I also can catch up on my sleep!
Picture notes: 1: looking down while drinving up from the port. 2. donkey train- in Fira (where my hotel is on Santorini) 3. Church behind my hotel. 4. Random cool building in Fira 5. My hotel- my room is on the 1st floor- and the very left hand room 6. Ferry I took 7-8 Winding road up from the port! 9. Arrival at port- tourists are met by what seems like an overwhelming number of hotel staff and tour guides. 10. Pulling into the Santorini port. 11. New friends from ferry- 2 german girls and guy from Pakistan (I think?) I don't remember their names- the girl in the red coat is Veronica and all of them were very nice and intelligent!
Well I am off to bed to see what another day of exploration brings!
Sweet!
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