Greece with the Gals, Cont.

Let the games begin! Athletic events have been held on
the site of the Panathenaic stadium for centuries.

Day 5

Because we basically ate snacks for dinner the night before, I awoke hungry! Luckily, our rental was located in the Plaka, so we were never more than a few steps away from some delicious options. While Shawn and Susan slept in, I went in search of something tasty.

The stadium features a small museum,
which is home to many of Greece's
Olympic torches.

I found an al fresco cafe that was already open and settled in for a Mediterranean omelette (tons of veggies and feta cheese) and a big cappuccino. As I enjoyed my breakfast, I watched the little square wake up around me: tourists beginning to stir and stroll, other restaurants stocking items and unfurling their awnings, Athenians hurrying off to work. Just beautiful.

Well sated, I pointed my footsteps toward my next attraction: the Panathenaic Stadium. The current facility, which is the only stadium in the world built entirely of marble, sits on the site of an ancient stadium where games have been held for centuries. In some of the earliest games, nude male athletes competed in track events. (Chafing, apparently, was a minor concern when weighed against possibly dying in bloody gladiatorial duels or contests with wild beasts.) 

On the day I visited, there were games being played! It looked like some sort of adult intramural relay, and then in another section, groups of school children were doing field-day exercises. Visitors had the run of the rest of the place, though. You could walk sections of the large track, clamber up to nearly every stadium seat there, take the underground tunnel to the small interior museum (where many of Greece's Olympic torches are on display) and gift shop, and even stand on the winners' podium! 

This was a fun, quick visit, and I really enjoyed it. 

Afterwards, I popped back by the rental to pick up Susan and Shawn for lunch. We headed for The Clumsies, which Shawn had spotted on the New York Times' list of the world's best bars. This ended up being a GREAT stop. It was noon-ish, so the bar wasn't overly full. We were quickly seated. We were delighted by the bar's whimsical drink menu, and we ordered refreshing spritzes to start. Then, we moved on to bar food. I chose the sliders, Susan got pizza, and Shawn had the ke-bao bun. Once the plates were delivered, we all shared entrees, and all of the food was delicious. We loved the vibe here, and our waiter spent a lot of time talking with us about the bar, the ingredients they use to make their cocktails and food, and the philosophy of the place. Wonderful.

Spritzes at The Clumsies!

Next up - some museum time! Athens has so many world-class museums, and we didn't get the chance to give them their due during our short stay in town. (It's odd. When we told fellow Americans we'd be staying in Athens for four days, they all asked us, "Why so long?" Honestly, we could have stayed there for much longer. We barely scratched the surface of all there is to do.) On this afternoon, though, we headed to the National Archaeological Museum. 

What a wonder! During the next 3 hours or so, we strolled through galleries featuring masterpieces of the world's great civilizations. The museum's Neolithic, Cycladic, and Mycenaean collections are very impressive, but so is their Egyptian exhibit. Gorgeous sculpture hid around every corner, and I loved some of their ancient gold jewelry. When we were ready for a break, we got lemonades from the museum cafe and enjoyed them at an open-air table in the facility's beautiful, shaded courtyard. 

After enjoying the museum, we walked back to our rental. Along the way, we stopped by some gorgeous sweet shops and picked up things to sample - baklava, cookies, etc. - and munched on them in the rental. 

The museums in Athens are world-class. Jockey of Artemision is a wonderful study of movement.

Day 6

The next day was a big one - we were flying to Santorini! We had a quick breakfast at the rental and packed up. Our AirBnb host was kind enough to arrange a cab for us from the rental to the airport, and we enjoyed a lively conversation with Spiro, our driver, enroute. 

Cloudy morning in Santorini

Spiro had traveled all over Europe and was married to a Swiss woman. When Susan professed her desire to visit Switzerland and asked Spiro his opinion of the country, he hesitated, then said, "Switzerland . . . is a good country to die in. It is very boring. There is nothing to do there." 

We about died laughing. Several times during our trip, someone we came into contact with would say something that tickled us. We started calling them "Greekisms" and began keeping track of them!

At any rate, we got to the airport, checked in for our flight, and made the 1-hour trip to the Santorini airport. Our AirBnb host in Santorini had kindly worked with us to arrange a driver to pick us up at the airport and get us to our rental. When we pulled in, a whole crew of young Greek guys were waiting to welcome us, show us the rental, tote our luggage in (Santorini is full of narrow, cobbled streets and tons of steps. There is no driving right up to your rental, particularly in Oia, where we were staying.), and otherwise assist. 

For our next four days in Oia, this group of folks would provide us with invaluable assistance, as getting around the island takes some doing. 

So, a quick Santorini overview - The island is a crescent shape and curves around the caldera. The caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic depression that collapsed after a volcanic eruption during the Minoan civilization and is now filled with gorgeous blue water. 

There are really only a few places where it makes sense for tourists without a car on the island to stay - Oia (where we stayed - quieter, best sunset views; on the northern tip of the crescent of the island), Fira (bigger city, noisier and more crowded, but more restaurants, shops, and nightlife; nestled in the inner curve of the crescent of the island) or Imerovigli (Fira adjacent). 

Santorini under cloud cover

The ride from Oia to Fira is about half an hour by car. We didn't really want to drive on the island. (I'd tried driving in a foreign country when our family went to Mexico shortly before the pandemic hit. It wasn't hard, but it was stressful.) We'd chosen to stay in Oia (We're not much for nightlife.) and taxi into Fira a couple of times to explore. 

That afternoon, however, we didn't do too much. We got settled into our rental, but the weather was chilly and rainy. We walked a bit and had a nice dinner (seafood linguine - yum!) at Strogili. Then, it was back to the rental for an early bedtime. (We'd hoped for one of Santorini's dazzling sunsets tonight, but with the rain, that was obviously a non-starter.) 

Wonderful tasting at Santo Winery in Fira

Day 7

The next morning was overcast, but thankfully not rainy. We'd originally thought today would be a hiking day, but considering the sky, we decided to spend our time exploring in Oia and Fira. We had a nice breakfast at the rental and headed out, starting by walking the cobblestoned streets of Oia around our rental. 

There are a few historic windmills in Oia (previously used to grind flour) that no longer function but have been preserved for the picturesque quality they lend to the landscape. There's also a ruined castle worth checking out in Oia. There was a period of history during which Oia was the target of pirates. Locals used the fortified castle to protect valuables and food stores during such attacks. The castle was ruined during an earthquake, but its remains are still moodily clinging to the cliff and are a great place for views and sunsets. (Our rental was situated squarely between the windmill and the castle, so we had an easy time locating both.) 

Just wandering in this area is nice. There are tons of shops and restaurants, in addition to stunning views (even in the clouds) around random corners. There are several blue-domed churches in Oia that are hot spots for photos, and they are beautiful. After a bit of walking and photo taking, we arranged to have a driver take us to Fira for the afternoon. 

Once there, we started with lunch/brunch at Tholoto Brunch and Restaurant. I chose a savory pancake, Shawn got a Benedict, and Susan picked a sandwich. With my meal, I also ordered the fresh-squeezed orange juice, and it was DELICIOUS. You will see fresh-squeezed orange juice on restaurant menus in Greece, and it is often rather pricey (7-8 Euros or more). That is because it is really fresh-squeezed orange juice, and it tastes fantastic. Sweet, but not too sweet, fresh pulp, just delicious. Now that I am back stateside, one of the food items I miss most about Greece is this juice. Heaven. 

Down the steps to Ammoudi Bay!

After breakfast, we browsed a few shops, then made our way to the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, which is perched on a hill and features a gorgeous interior ceiling. Then, we decided to walk to Santo Winery for a tasting. On the map, it was about 2.5 miles, so we thought it was do-able. Most of the trek is on a sidewalk (though along a not-very-picturesque road), so we were fine. At the very end, though, the route turns sharply uphill, and the sidewalk disappears. If you try this on foot, just remain aware that the last half mile or so is dicey. If we had to do it again, we might have *tried* to get a cab.

At any rate, we arrived at the winery. Even though we didn't have a reservation, we were seated immediately near a window with a view of the caldera. We chose the 4-wine tasting with snacks, and it was perfect! It came with two whites and two reds, cheese, crackers, salami, and a couple of dips. For the next few hours, we sipped, nibbled, discussed, and enjoyed the views. We particularly liked the local wine variety - Assyrtiko - and continued to order it for the remainder of the trip. Shawn also bought a bottle of pink Vedema for later. 

We got a ride back to the rental, where we showered and napped. By this time, the sun had come out! Santorini looks completely different in the sunshine than it does with cloud cover. It switches from moodily cinematic to a technicolor dream! Shawn and I high-tailed it to our rooftop deck, where we sprawled across the outdoor bed and soaked up the sunshine. 

After we'd rested a bit in the fine air, we changed for dinner and took the steps from Oia all the way down to Ammoudi Bay for dinner at Ammoudi Fish Tavern. What a treat! We ordered a carafe of wine (More wine!) and tons of starters - salad, mussels, grilled vegetables, fries, etc. A note - At some of the family-style Greek restaurants, you can order a large portion of fish for the whole table. So, you might order 1 kilo of grilled fish (which is 2.2 pounds and would easily feed four people) for 85 Euros. This is a great option for seafood, but to order it, your whole table has to agree. (Otherwise, you will have A LOT of leftover fish.) Just something to keep in mind.

Ammoudi Bay lights up brilliantly at night!

The food was great, the wine was flowing, and they had live Greek music. Just a gorgeous, gorgeous night right by the water. Conditions initially looked right for a lovely sunset, but clouds swooped in at the last moment and stymied our dreams! (No worries. The wine did an excellent job of blunting any disappointment.)

After dinner, we caught a car back to the rental rather than trusting our feet to the long staircase in the dark. 

More to come . . . 

Narrow night streets of Oia in Santorini