It's been a couple weeks since we've been back, it seems like forever ago and we're are missing out trip very much. We just ordered a case of Retsina to keep us in the Greek Mood for a while. When I look at the pictures, they look like something someone else took, it all went by so fast, and then it was over and neither of us were ready to come home. We saw absolutely the most amazing ancient sites, met some very awesome people, ate magnificent food, drank marvelous wine, and got eaten alive by mosquittoes, which leads me to things I learned about Greece.
1. Mosquittoes. Yes in Greece they have mosquittoes and they are crazy kamikazzi bugs that will bite you anywhere and often. we had bites on our ankles, toes, fingers, elbows, legs, knees, butts and everywhere else. and they were ferocious bites that swelled up and itched like crazy. I'm guessing bug spray is not cheap in greece, but I'd take some along with you if I were you.
2. sunscreen. take some. taken enough. do not wait to buy it in greece. there are 2 brands available to purchase, and 2 brands only, and the cheapest bottle was 20EU, which is like 26 bucks. we didn't buy it, and luckily for us we had a lot of cloudy days, but if you go when the sun is shining, buy it in america. seriously.
3. driving. I was prepared for driving in greece because I was reading about it for 2 years. The philosophy is quite simple. Unless you are going well over the speed limit, then you ride the line between the shoulder and the lane. on the highways you stay right. keep it slow when in the hilly regions, and hug the shoulder. watch for sheep, goats, rocks and holes in the road. the worst roads we were on in greece were no worse than the worst I've been on in the states, and the best (the super highway) was way better than anything in the states. in cities, drive slow, and watch out for motorcycles and scooters who do not follow any traffic laws at all. none. they drive when and where they want to and think that's ok. there's no reason to touch your horn, if you follow these simple rules, there will never be any reason to. Our cab driver in Athens used it once because someone cut him off, but for the most part, the cities are pertty quite of urban car noises. as far as us getting lost, most of that was because very few road signs tell you exactly which road you are, making your map completely usesless. There are however lots of signs telling you which village or town is close by, but rarely do the names on the signs match the names on your map. We had 2 maps of Greece and both of them named the towns different things. Before you get in a car, make sure you know which general direction you are going (n, s, e, w) and watch for town signs and try to match them up with what's on the map to make sure you're going the wrong way. luckily distances in greece are like distances in missouri. even if you get lost, you'll only be minutes away from getting back on track. when we got lost on Crete it cost us 1/2 an hour, even though it seemed like forever on the windy roads. when we got lost trying to find our hotel in athens, I tried to use the akropolis as a landmark, knowing where our hotel was in relationship to it, and eventually made it there. Land Nav in the army is a very good tool for getting around in strange places, but just be aware of where you are in relationship to things around you. Pay attention and don't get lost in a map. sometimes a map will mess you up more than just using your intuition. don't expect to stop off somewhere an ask someone for directions, because they might now speak english and will be no help to you at all.
4. language. we should have learned more greek. that is our stupid american ego crap's fault. we got by, but we felt like tourists always expecting the people around us to cater to our american wishes. for the most part we lucked out. anyone under 30 had a good chance of moderate english speaking. anyone over 30 your odds were much worse. there were really only 2 times that it was an issue, but for 2 weeks in greece, the only thing we learned how to say was efferisto poly, which was pretty stupid of us. I'm not saying take a 10 week greek course, but maybe some basics, sure wouldn't hurt.
5. money. the economy in greece has taken a toll on using credit cards. we were told everyone takes them, and we found out that now most people don't. if you are in a big city, you'll probably be fine, but once you venture outside, be prepared to pay cash for everything. gas, food, water and all of the ancient sites and museums. I think we had to take out money 4 times on the entire trip, had to pay cash for gas twice and got to use our credit card for food 5 or 6 times. if you see an atm somewhere, it might not work, so don't assume that it will be easy to get money anytime you want. gas stations do not have atms in them like in the states. usually you need to find an actual bank to use their atm. in the more resorty areas, there were more options for atms, but just be prepared.
6. be prepared. i had a great 16 day itenerary planned, and for the most part, we got everything in that I wanted to see. realize that all the ancient sites open at either 8 or 8:30 and close at 3:00. this limits your window quite a bit. spinalonga island opened at 9, but we had to wait for more people to show up before we got to leave and wind up taking another 30 minutes. luckily the drive to our next stop was 1/2 as long as I was told, or it would have really put us out. the distances are smaller and sometimes you can completely ignore the speed limits, but they are still between 30-50km an hour, which is pretty slow. expecting to drive 30 miles in under an hour is not likely. plan accordingly. I tried to have no more than 2 things a day, unless there was a bunch of stuff close by, and we still had to choose between matala beach for lunch and agia triada mostly because we got lost finding gortyn and that put us back an hour. I had 4 things planned that day and probably would have made it if we hadn't got lost. expect to get lost and turned around and you'll be fine.
7. food. we ate a lot of meals alone because of the eating schedule in greece. breakfast is usually coffee and a pastry, lunch is 2:30 and diner is 10:00 or later. this is a crazy schedule and I have no idea how greeks do it, but we were trying to do a 1 lunch 7 dinner and found ourselves in empty restaurants for the most part. don't worry though, because you will get extra special attention and not have to worry about getting ignored. all of the water we saw was bottled, so buy it. it's cheap and you will need to drink a lot of it. we found ourselves sometimes with 2-3 bottles of water in the car that were always gone by dinner time. You will drink a lot of water, greece is a very dry country. don't mess around, drink your water. also when you order a greek salad, it will come with no lettuce in it. and gyros for the most part are not on the menu. souvlaki is grilled meat on a stick. get that. it's delicious. also the bread they eat is normal bread. i saw pita bread one time on the whole trip. the greek food in america is really different. seriously. don't be afraid of the mezzes. they are delicious and filling and can make a whole meal by themselves. don't go crazy with the ouzo. mix some water in there and sip it. the house wine never failed us on the trip, and usually was less than 5 eu for 1/2 a caraff. the free desserts are nice, make sure to tip a little for that. also when the free raki shows up on your table in crete, be careful. it tastes aweful, but is not that potent. smile a lot and drink it. don't be a butthole, just drink it. don't always assume the tripadvisor top 5 is the best places to eat. cheaper food can be found in the back alleys and streets of little towns and usually it's home cooking and the best meal you'll ever eat. we found some gems. also when driving through the wilderness, if you see a little town and have a hankering, stop off and go to the place where all the old men are sitting outside. that's the townie taverna and you'll get some good food there. don't be expecting fast food joints. we saw 1 mcdonalds and 1 starbucks in all of greece. they were both in athens, and seemed empty, so just move along.
8. people. the people of greece for the most part were super nice, friendly and accommodating. there were exceptions, as you would expect, and that was fine. our hotel manager in navplion was a scary looking man, but we could tell he was trying. also for you smart asses (like me), keep it in your pocket. for the most part, the greeks won't appreciate your sense of humour no matter how much you belabor the point. but do try to be friendly, not complain, and if anything gets messed up, just smile and go with it. whomever you're dealing with will probably bend over backwards to make it right. don't complain about the smoke when people are smoking in a bar or restaurant, this is their country and they'll do what they want. don't glare at other drivers because they're not obeying traffic laws, or cut you off, or whatever. don't stare. the greek people have come a very long way, and for the most part, have existed for 10,000 years in this country unfazed. they know what they're doing, so just smile and say efferisto poly.
9. and finally if you are going to Greece, go to Matt Barrett's awesome blog, read it from top to bottom and get an idea of where you want to go. http://www.greektravel.com/ Seriously, when I found his website 2 year ago, I thought i had died and gone to heaven. This is definitely the place to start before going to Greece. He has all the info you need and you can access it while in Greece to find places to go, or you can do like I did and print stuff out before you leave. His pictures and stories are the best and I must honestly say our wonderful holiday to Greece would have never happened if it weren't for him. efferisto poly Matt Barrett.
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