We managed, somehow, to get to Olympia, thoroughly unprepared. (How do we go to Olympia, please?) We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly there - how could we not?Yet, the whole day out in the sun got to us, eventually. And living on juice, bread and cheese is never a good idea. At Patras, we had an awful youth hostel. We'd read reviews that called it a 'filthy scum hole', but there was no other place to stay. Calling in Greece was ridiculously expensive, so we hadn't been able to call home. We were planning to go next to Athens and had no idea where we would stay there. All in all, we were well on the way to being upset by the smallest things.And then it happened - that which got us upset. We discovered that even though museums in Olympia close at 19:30, the last train out of Olympia is at 15:20. That meant two things - we would have to take a bus to Pyrgos (and spend more money again) and … [Read more...]
Peach Juice
My sister and I coined a beautiful parameter for comparison. "It's like peach juice" means something special to us.Backpacking in Greece, we did something very smart. We realised that we were constantly thirsty and often in need of energy. So we took to buying large packs of juice, rather than shopping all the time for food, and hunting for water fountains. It was an intelligent thing to do - it saved money and kept us active. Both were equally important, and we felt good about ourselves for having thought of it. Later, we would use the same carton for water, filling it at fountains, carrying it around with us.Unfortunately, I don't like fruits much, and so, I don't like juice much. As a result, we ended up buying one particular brand of mixed fruit juice all the time. It was delicious, but repetitive. One fine day, we decided that we would try something different. We decided to buy … [Read more...]
The FERRY
I had been on a ferry before - to Essel World. I knew all about ferries, I thought. In any case, what was to know? Five hundred people on a boat that could accommodate about three hundred, all carrying fish and other things I did not want to identify. That was what we were prepared for.Like vagabonds, having roamed the streets of Bari all day, we reached well in time for our ferry to Greece. We were tired and dirty, waiting to reach Greece and have a much-needed bath.Then we saw the ferry.It was not a ferry in my dictionary. It was not even a ship; it was a SHIP.We felt almost untouchable on that ship, gaping at it with starry eyes. There was a red carpet and an escalator. There were lounges (in the plural), a Mariners' Club, a swimming pool, a gaming zone, 'playland' for children, a cafe, bars...We mustered what confidence we could to get onto the boat like scruffy … [Read more...]