Adventure Accounting

According to our guide from the Athens City Tour , there are three museums that we have to visit in our lifetime. 1) The Smithsonian in Washington DC, 2) The British Museum in London and 3) The Acropolis Museum in Athens. These museums are the most important. He’s the archaeologist. We had an extra full day in Athens because our flight got moved to a later time. We gained one day in Athens and lost a day allotted for Barcelona. Boooo. I had to book another night in the AthensBackpackers. Ugh. We checked-out and left our luggage the proceeded to brave the sun of Athens. The Acropolis Museum   was just walking distance from the Acropolis. Luggage area of Athens Backpackers The museum had a modern structure. For me, it was quite an eyesore amidst all the ruin surrounding the Acropolis. The museum was built above some ruins. Or... the ruins were put underneath. You can view some from the glass floor. There are ruins beneath that glass The muse...

Getting to Santoini. Ferry or fly? The ferry rides from Athens to Santorini takes around 5 hours on the highspeed ferry and 8 hours for the slow ferry. I read reviews that this is a good way to get to Santorini if you have time to waste. I didn’t. I’ve honed my staking-airline-carrier-websites-for-seat-sales skills. I was able to score a roundtrip Athens-Santorini flight for €130! Good enough. Getting Around Santorini Renting an ATV or a motorbike is the easy option. You’ll just have to bother with parking the machine. *shrugs*. Lots of shops renting out these. In my case, walking was fun. Even though it took us 25 minutes to get from Karterados to Fira. The sun is hot, but it is not humid (unlike summers here in the Philippines, *melts*). Food Don’t orderdessert so fast. The Greeks in this island may take a liking for their customers, and they give them free desserts! If you’re charming enough. *wink* Try out family-restaurants. The food will ta...

Blame it on Mamma Mia and The Sisterhood of Travelling Pants. My dream trip to Santorini: luxurious, romantic, and chillax to the max. My room would have this breath-taking view of the sparkling blue ocean and I'll  be eating an endless supply of hummus and feta cheese. That didn't happen (well, not yet :P). I ended up staying a hostel called Caveland located in Karterados. Far from the noisy town of Fira and pricey town of Oia.  I learned about Caveland through a friend I met during my Mount Pulag Climb. She backpacked across Europe as well and stayed in Caveland for her Santorini leg. Bouganvilla in this side of the world We stayed three nights in the 4-bed girls dorm in this wonderful hostel in Karterados. The dorm rooms were huge and they were cozy, well kept, and always clean. Lockers and hangers for each Cavelander. The lockers had the sockets in them so each Cavelander can charge her gadget. They provided two towels (one bath towel and one sma...

The Feta Feast continues in Santorini. After some rest in Caveland, we inquired for a good Greek restaurant. We were directed to Savvas. Savvas is a very very good restaurant in the Karkerados area. It is family-run. The mom cooks everything, and the dad just watches the mom and one of the kids help her. He stopped watching TV as soon as we ordered the lamb steak. He turned on the grill, flexed his muscles, and cooked the one of the best lamb steaks ever! Quality food for a good price. They really mean FETA CHEESE. Check out that block in the salad.    We liked the food, the place and the price, sooo much that we ate there again. Their fries and spaghetti are both good. Everything is really good.    Another hearty lunch for 21 euros, shared by 2.   Found a restaurant with a Tripvisor sticker in Firostefani. Famished from our long hikefrom Oia, we decided we could spend a bit here. And get some wine. The entire meal costs € 42.50 ...

The plan was to go back to Oia and take it slow. But, the lazy vibe of Caveland induced us to go around Fira, then go to a beach. We had a nice uphill leisurely walk (you’ll get used to this) and reached Fira in 25 minutes. I was expecting a crowd, but the streets were pretty empty for some reason. I could get some decent pics. Some shopping in Santorini Did some mild shopping of shirts and some jewelry accessories. Not the lavish type of jewelry, just some unique knick knacks. I know my Quiapo and Divisoria accessories and these were different. I bought some sets for my friends but I ended up using all of them. Harharhar. I dreamt of aprofile shot with Santorini in the background. I’ll have the happy shot, the drama shot, the sun salute shot and the wind-blowing-in-my-hair-and-I-want-to-look-like-a-goddess-shot. That didn't work out. It was too windy for a decent profile pic. In front of me is a crowd waiting for their own turn in this spot. ...

Mamma Mia. Sisterhood of Travelling Pants. Both movies bragged beautiful filming sets. Greece is in my list for this Europe II adventure because of Santorini. I got roundtrip tickets from Athens to Santorini for € 130 – that’s just € 65/way. Alternatively, you can also take a ferry but that takes at least 8 hours. The flight to Santorini took 30 minutes. Take-off. Short flight. Landing. View from the plane. I was so excited when I saw all these white houses!   Upon arrival, we took a cab going to our hostel in Santorini – “Caveland”. The cab cost €15. You can also take the bus for a cheapo price but that takes time.   Santorini Airport Late lunch. Rest. Sunblock. Water. Maps. I changed into a nicer picturesque-worth outfit   (I know my priorities) . Grandpa in Caveland (I’m terribly sorry but I can’t recall his name) advised us to do the walk in reverse. Most tourists start out in Fira then trek all the way to Oia. He said that reve...

Look at all those awards.   So many awards The place is very easy to find because this is near the Acropolis.    The neighborhood at night We booked a 4-bed ensuite room and stayed there for three nights. We were assigned in room 1-1. The aircon was working but it continuously leaked drops of water. We immediately told this to the staff but they didn't act on this until the third night. We placed the trash can over the AC leak and half the trash can was filled in the morning.   The room. With the stuff of our roommates. Aside from the ensuite shower, there is a common shower outside. The bathroom was a bit stuffy. You have to open the window for ventilation.  

My appreciation for Greek food is limited to my Cyma experience. Cyma's menu. Circa 2008. After dumping our stuff in Athens Backpackers, we dragged our hungry selves into finding this taverna near the Acropolis. We missed it at first, but guided by some nice locals, we were able to find To Kati Allo (spelled in Greek as “To Kati Aλλo”). It is a family-owned taverna just a stone throw away from Acropolis and Athens Backpackers.     We ordered some meat and potatoes, stuffed peppers and moussaka!   Total bill was €23 for both of us (€ 11.50 each). A pretty good deal! We decided to go back here the next day, and the day before we fly to Barcelona. Bread as appetizer   Meat and potatoes Stuffed peppers. Stuffed with flavored rice. Yummeh!

The plan: Walk going to Syntagma Square slowly. Explore the Roman Agora area. Get profile-picture worthy shots. It is Day 2 of Ancient Athens. Time to utilize th e € 12 combination ticket that we boughtin Acropolis . When planning your itinerary, check the opening and closing times of the sites in this link . Some sites are closed on Mondays/Tuesdays. I ran out of goddess-like outfits that day. Laundry was scheduled that night. I had to wear a black dress during a scorching hot weather.   We started the day early. We were at the Temple of Olympian Zeus shortly after 9:00am.    Tyring out yoga poses Jumpshot. Yes, those are my cycling shorts. Huli! Wa-poise!

The previous daywas uneventful. We were brimming with energy when we arrived at Athens Studios to meet our tour guide for the walking tour - costs €6. I warned Marj that these walking tours are very tiring, and it doesn’t give you time to take photos/camwhore. The tour started at around 9:00 am. Lots of Australians (there are always Australian backpackers), some from other EU countries. From Asia, there’s just us and some girls from Singapore. I feel some kind of kinship whenever I see someone from South-East Asia backpacking around the world. Surprisingly, there were no Americans. We made our way to Syntagma Square, into some side streets (that I can’t recall). At some point, we stopped for some snacks and a toilet break. Very important. Better empty your bladder even if don’t feel like it. There will be no time to pause after this break. I bought a banana from a fruitstand for €0.20. I like our local bananas better. It was a flurry of ancient stories. Al...

Planning a Europe trip is overwhelming. One crucial tip I learned from my Europe 2011 trip: choose adjoining countries. BUT , I still chose to Greece as my next country after Prague – Hehehehe. I thought I’d catch up on the other countries that I didn’t get to do during EU I. I booked a promo fare flight via Aegean Airlines from Prague to Athens. Got it for EUR 64, which includes one check-in luggage.   Bought the tickets in October 2012. It was a three-hour flight going from Prague to Athens. We had to adjust time zones. Athens is ahead of Prague by an hour. My luggage - with a bag tag matching the purple camera case. We landed in Athens International Airport past 2:00pm. Ka-jet lag yung flight . :P Got our luggage, then we followed the signs going to the train station. This was easy. We got the tickets going to the city – €14 for 2 pax. The travel to the city center took around 45 minutes, but it felt longer. I got tired from the plane ride.