One Last Stop

This next leg of the trip was probably the least stressful. We had a layover in Athens before we had to part ways with good ol’ Seanyboy. It was such a wonderful trip and I was so glad I was able to share a little in his experiences. He was making sure to enjoy every minute and I was proud of him for that. I am so grateful I was able to get back to Europe and explore new areas there. It was another adventure for the books and I am blessed to have spent it with such wonderful people. Once our goodbyes were said we headed to Geneva, Switzerland as our flight was heading back to the states from there. Sean went on his way to finish up his semester abroad!

       

 
 
 

 

                   Kyle and I arrived in Geneva just before sunset. We saw the Alps as we landed into the airport and a bit as we took the bus to our destination. We had found a hotel, Ibis, near the city center for a very reasonable price. It was a small and very modern hotel, but very clean and the staff was friendly. It was also a short trip to the airport which we had to be back to early in the morning. After we got freshened up we went to explore the town a bit. We saw the famous Jet d’Eau de Geneve (water fountain) in Geneva. It was all lit up and very beautiful.  It shoots 140 meters into the air! We walked up and down the streets of the cute town and wanted to try fondue since it seemed to be a famous dish here. We found ourselves at a spot called Auberge de Saviese.  It looked like an old time mountain cottage inside and was very cozy. We had a great cheese fondue appetizer and a steak fondue that was melt-in-you-mouth. We walked through various squares and enjoyed the flowers that had started to bloom before we made our way back to the hotel. It was a nice and relaxing evening, one we needed to prepare for our long journey the next day. We were also pretty exhausted from the week itself.

                The next morning our plane went from Geneva back to Brussels (irony?) then onto the states. It had made for a very long day and it was good to be home to the states!

                The trip was one filled with adventures and new expeditions for all of us. We made some friends, enjoyed some good food and drink and amazingly still live to tell about it. Looking back it seems as though it all happened in the blink of an eye. It was such a whirlwind it was hard to piece everything together. I am not the best at relaxing while I am on a vacation like this one because there is so much to be seen so I would rather continue to explore. Europe is such a wondrous place filled with rich history and beauty. I can’t help but get lost in it all. It still charmed me just as it did when I lived in Italy. Every stone has a story to tell and you leave with an amazing one of your own. “We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us” is a quote that has fell very dear to my heart. I cannot live this life without travel and exploration. I cannot stop taking on new adventures and opportunities. I cannot let life escape me.

Exploration of Santorini

 

Our first full day in Santorini was a fun, relaxing and adventurous one! We brought the skillet from the kitchen to the balcony outside and Kyle whipped us up some breakfast. We enjoyed the view and mimosas before I decided to meander through the streets. They guys were content on the balcony and did not have the patience for me to pop in and out of shops. I enjoyed my time exploring and stepped into the church in the town square. Pictures were not allowed, but the space was very neat. It looked like the Byzantine style and was very ornate with its detail. There was gold and candles everywhere. It was a pleasant surprise from the white exterior and blue roof. I continued popping in and out of shops and got myself a blanket as a memento. I admired much of the jewelry, but could not make up my mind on what I wanted. Many of the locals were hustling around preparing for the tourist season, we had just caught the end of the off season.  I made my way back to the apartment with souvenirs in hand and more champagne for the guys.  Little had I known they did not need any at that moment. They had hit the hard stuff early on and were feeling very well. They hadn’t moved since I left.

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted to go check out the winery and it seemed like it was a close walk. Sean wanted to go check out one of the beaches. When we arrived at the Taxi Cab station they told us the winery was far away. Somehow we ended up having him take us to a beach, a popular one we said. He assured us this beach would be a nice one. After a long cab ride we ended up at a deserted beach. The sand was black and there was not a soul out there. Our only saving grace was a bar on the beach with a nice woman bartending. She helped us out and told us the right places to go. We had ourselves a drink and Sean was mesmerized by her personal cigarette roller. Eventually we started making our way back to Fira, the capital of the island. We kept waiting for the bus and it never came. This is when Sean thought it would be a good idea to hitch hike. I do not think any of the Grecian people trusted him. Every time they would continue to drive away he would yell some sort of profanity at them. Kyle and I could not help but laugh at the situation.

                                 

Finally we found a deserted Inn and asked one of the gentlemen working if he would take us, luckily he was kind enough to do so. When we arrived in Fira we walked around a bit and decided to stay there and eat. We found Mama’s, which was another recommendation from the American woman. Mama was friendly and welcoming and we were relieved to find ourselves among people again. This meal I tried a veal pasta dish, Kyle did the lamp and Sean did a seafood pasta dish. It was all amazing! As much as I loved the other food on the trip Greece was my favorite.

 

 

 

 

 

After an early dinner we walked around in Fira and stopped at a café that looked over the water. We had ourselves some Irish coffees and enjoyed another view of the sunset. After our drinks we headed back to Oia. We enjoyed another night in the Villa and out on the balcony. I could have stayed another week and explored more of the island. The buildings were amazing and it seemed there was so much I hadn’t gotten to see.

 When we woke up in the morning Sean did not feel the greatest and our electricity had run out during some wind storms the night before. This was not a very good house to run out of electricity in. Kyle and I walked around a little before we had to head to the airport. We walked up by these very old wind mills and saw the “Number One Place to Propose” on the island. We soaked in every view and I took every picture I could before we had to head to the airport. Although it was short and full of adventure we all enjoyed our time in Santorini. Like any trip, it went by too fast.

 

 

Here in Paradise

The next morning we woke up bright and early and joined the crowd to Santorini. We took the Blue Star Ferry, which was a eight hour trip. It made two other stops on the way and we were the last. On our ferry ride we enjoyed the view, slept a little, took in the sights and finally were able to enjoy ourselves after a rough day of travelling. Since we just had general cabin tickets we bounced around quit a bit trying get different views and stay away from the wind. There were so many little islands on the way it made me wonder how people lived out here on a day-to-day basis. They seemed so far away from everything and held such a different life. We enjoyed some beverages and watched the world move by us slowly, soaking up every moment possible.

 

 

 

 

Upon arrival to Santorini we were faced with huge cliffs of green, brown and a rustic red. On top of these cliffs sat extremely white houses. Hundreds of people went down to the bottom of the ferry where they herded us off. We found a gentleman holding a sign for us and he took us to our villa in Oia. While the island is fairly large Oia is a very quaint quiet area that looks over the still active Volcano. Tania had met us in Oia and showed us to the Villa. Since there are a lot of winding cobblestone paths they do not all have names, which makes it very hard to find your way around. She went over the map of the island and the villa.

The villa itself was breathtaking! We had a magnificent view over the town and water. There were many smaller shops close by as well. After we got settled we made our way to the ruins a couple steps from our villa to watch the sunset. We climbed around a bit, as much as we could anyway and settled into watch a gorgeous sunset. Although it was extremely windy where we were standing the view was perfect. We had found paradise. When the sun went down we went back to freshen up for dinner.  On our little climb up to our villa we passed by another balcony with an American girl sitting outside. While I was getting ready Sean struck up a conversation with her. Unfortunately for him she was with her parents and could not join us that evening. She gave us some great suggestions for food though which came in handy throughout the trip.

When everyone was ready we made our way to dinner. It did not take us long to get lost, but luckily we passed by someone will to show us the way. We found ourselves at a very lively restaurant where the owner welcomed us and was very friendly. I had a lamb past which was absolutely amazing. Sean enjoyed his shrimp pasta. We shared a couple of bottles of wine and treated ourselves to a nice meal as our first in Santorini. It was a wonderful evening despite Sean and I debating on politics and worldly issues which Kyle didn’t particularly care for. We headed back to the villa and enjoyed our evening. Skyping our family members and sitting out on the patio thankful we had made it to paradise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Great Expedition

On Thursday we left early for our round of flights to Santorini. The plan was to fly from Vienna to Belgrade via Air Serbia then from Belgrade to Athens. Sean had purchased tickets from Athens to Santorini allowing us to arrive in Santorini around 8 and giving us a four hour layover in Athens (3 if we knew of the time change). The funny thing about plans is they can change in an instant. In this case this plan changed over a couple of hours. When we arrived at Vienna airport they notified us that our plane was delayed two hours. They assured us everything would be taken care of and we would arrive with our plane waiting there for us. When we arrived in Belgrade sure enough, our plan had left, but that was alright they said, another one was leaving in an hour. We had to pick up and re-check our bags and led to the terminal like school students. We felt assured that we would still have an hour to pick up and re-check our bags in an hour and catch our flight to Santorini. Upon arrival to Athens my bag came through quickly and we went up to the terminal. At first we were walking casually until we saw the clock reading 7:00, our flight was supposed to leave at 7:10. We never looked into the time change and began to run to the check in counter. Sure enough, we missed our flight. As Kyle described the moment of Sean and I’s faces it was as if someone told us Santa Clause wasn’t real.

We went to the service counter hoping to sort things out and change our flight, which they were willing to do for 60 euro and leave at 10 AM the next day. Then we went to Air Serbia hoping to get some money back and help from them since they were jackasses that messed everything up, but they were not helping either. After telling her she was useless I thought it was best to keep my mouth shut. As most of you know me it is no surprise that tears started welling up. Sean and Kyle stepped in trying to talk it all out. Finally we decided to take the ferry at 7:00 AM to Santorini. The thought was that by doing this we would do what we originally intended and see a lot of Greece on our way down. It wasn’t the best day of our travels; apparently Sean does not have the best luck with traveling. 

 

 

 

We took the bus to the port area with the intention to stay at a hostel Sean had looked up. When we got off the stop we were not in the best area and went to the Taxi Cab station. One gentleman noticed we looked lost and were tourists and offered to help us out. He charged us 10 euro to go a block and drop us off at the worst hostel I had ever stayed at. Granted they only charged 15 euro a night and all we needed was a place to lay our heads. After Kyle read the reviews of the hostel people encouraged guests to not to take their shoes off.  We had three twin beds placed right next to each other with comforters we didn’t dare touch. Once we settled in and tried out the smokey room they called a bar we decided to venture off and find some food. We found ourselves at a little place down the street. This area was not the safest, but people were nice. We had some gyros and I added in some feta. The prepared it differently than I expected- with oregano and olive oil. The gyros were delicious and I also tried a chicken kebab which was amazing. It felt good to have some good food and friendly people around us. We headed back to our hostel with some beers and slept enough to wake up on time the next morning. It was quiet an adventurous day, but we made it through and were excited about getting to Santorini!