Greece (9/16 – 9/26/2021)

Update!! (7/29/22)

Nearly a year after the trip (...), I found the notebook in which I wrote my notes for Greece! Here we go!

Greece: Days 1 - 3 (9/16-9/18/21)

I'm excited to resurrect my travel blog after a two-year hiatus so that my 1 reader (hi, Mom!)* can get a sense of what we're up to in Greece. I'm pretty sure I make that joke every two years.**

*Wow, I think I've made this joke at least 5 times over the course of this blog... **OMG! I actually called myself out about making the joke while making the joke. This blog is starting to feel very inception-y...

Background: Our friends, Lisa and Jon, got married in May and booked a private catamaran to sail the Greek Isles as a slightly delayed honeymoon. The boat had a few extra cabins, so KJ/I and our friends Ashley and Mel were the two lucky couples to score an invite. KJ and I haven't taken a "real" (read: non-St. George, Utah) since we started dating ~2.5 years ago, and it's been a long (and ongoing) pandemic, so we figured this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sail the Greek Isles with good friends and **not have to plan it ourselves**. Also, shout out to our pals at Beehive Sports for connecting us to folks that are now lifelong friends.

Day 1: 5:30AM wake-up --> SLC --> ORD --> ATH: Acropolis, Stadium, National Gardens, Lycabettus Hill

A long travel day but relatively smooth. KJ taught me backgammon on the plane* and it's become a highlight of the trip. We arrived in Athens around 7AM local time and caught a taxi to Platia Sintagmatos to meet the rest of the crew at a delightful AirB&B in the heart of downtown within walking distance to many major historical sites. We grabbed some street giros and set out for the Acropolis.

*I still play backgammon on my phone for about 5 minutes EVERY DAY!

From History.com:
"The Acropolis of Athens is one of the most famous ancient archaeological sites in the world. Located on a limestone hill high above Athens, Greece, the Acropolis has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Over the centuries, the Acropolis was many things: a home to kings, a citadel, a mythical home of the gods, a religious center and a tourist attraction."

Touring the Acropolis involves a fair amount of walking/climbing steps, and it was a hot and humid day, so while conditions weren't ideal, it was worth the ensuing sweatiness. After the Acropolis, we popped over for a quick view of the stadium and National Gardens.

View of columns at the Acropolis

The group touring the Acropolis

View of Athens from the Acropolis

Kjarsten, Mel, Ashley, and Jon at the National Gardens

At this point in the day, KJ and I had been up for 24+ hours. No sleeping on the plane for us and we decide to power through the day in order to set our internal clocks to Greece time. We grabbed a few drinks and snacks at a cafe before KJ tapped out and the rest of us set off on foot for Lycabettus Hill, which promised a dinner location with stunning views of the whole city. 2km walk from our AirBnB with 600 feet of elevation gain in the last half mile of the walk. Yeah, I'm mixing measurement systems in this description--sue me. I was pretty delirious by this point due to lack of sleep, but the walk and delirium were worth the view.

I'm probably drinking Ouzo.

View of the city at night from the restaurant on Lycabettus Hill

Day 2: Getting on the boat / Aegina

KJ and I popped out of bed around 7AM feeling like fairly-well-adjusted human beings. He went on a short walk around the neighborhood to track down some Greek coffee and pastries. We took a few hours to pack up the AirBnB before heading to the Alimos marina to board our yacht. Some technical malfunctions delayed our boarding by about 3 hours, so we passed the time at the marina cafe over drinks and beef kabobs. Could have been worse.

Around 5PM, we met our captain, Emilios, and set out for our first spot to weigh anchor for the night at cove on the island of Aegina, the closest island to the mainland. After our safety briefing, we dropped anchor, swam and paddled for an hour, and cobbled together dinner on the board (hard to go wrong with feta, olives, and salami, IMO), established a tentative sailing plan for the week based on water and wind conditions, and settled in for the night.

Home, Sweet Yacht

We are happy to be on a yacht

Intense game of backgammon

Weighing anchor off of Aegina

Day 3 - Kythnos (updated 8/1/2022)

I didn't sleep well the first night, so I resigned myself to being tired and got out of bed in time for a cup of Greek coffee and to watch the sunrise. KJ schooled me in a game of backgammon. The group cooked a modest breakfast on the boat and settled in for a 6-hour leg toward Kythnos.

Watching the sunrise

We arrived at Kythnos around 2:30 and stopped off in a cove for an hour of swimming and paddling around. I'm fairly adept at SUPing so I spent most of my time on the board while others snorkeled and swam. We came up with a new competition called "barnacling" where a paddler races another paddler while another person is attached to the bow of the boat (koala-style...or...barnacle...).

In my "kelement" on a Stand-Up Paddleboard

Hanging out on the boat

Kythnos is a small, sparsely populated island known for beaches and a few taverns. Emilios took the dingy ashore to make a 9:40 (!) dinner reservation for us, so we passed the time swimming, reading, playing backgammon, and ERS*. Dinner was at a lovely restaurant built into the hillside. I opted for a Greek salad and grilled sardines. And Ouzo. 

*I have no idea what ERS stands for now.

Buildings built into hillside of Kythnos

Kythnos has beautiful rock formations

If you're not famialar with Ouzo...it is "a dry anise-flavored aperitif that is widely consumed in Greece. [1] It is made from rectified spirits that have undergone a process of distillation and flavoring. Its taste is similar to other anise liquors like pastis, sambuca, rakı and arak" (Wikipedia)."

It's an acquired/polarizing taste. KJ and I loved it, but I think we were the only ones that consistently drank it throughout the trip.

At this point in the trip, I asked everyone what their favorite part was:

• Lisa - parking the boat and jumping off to swim around in open water
• Ashley -  having no cell service and being in good company
• Jon - the relaxing nature of being on a boat
• KG - food; endless olives, feta, and meat

I don't know why I don't have answers for Mel or KJ...

Day 4: Serifos

We got A/C in our cabin last night and it was a critical difference maker for my sleep! We helped Emilios ready the boat (pulling lines, buoys, etc.) and set out for Serifos. 

Check out some additional history and context for Serifos here (link).

We arrived at the island around noon. Unlike previous island stops, we moored at the port (access to power, etc.). Emilios gave us a brief orientation of the island and some recommendations for what to do and where to go. We packed up our hiking equipment and shoes and set out on foot for the top of a hill overlooking the rest of the island. The hiking paths were painted white. The three-mile round trip hike had about 800 feet of elevation gain and meandered through small alleys of bright white buildings with blue doors and trim--the imagery that people often associate with the Greek islands, especially Santorini. On the way down from the top (I think the Monastery of Taxiarches (?)), we stopped at a beachside restaurant for a lovely lunch. After eating, our group split up for a few hours to swim, shower, shop for groceries (KJ bought SPAM...).

Buildings on Serifos reflect the blue/white color combination so often associated with Greek isles

Hiking up to the top of the island

View from the top of Serifos

View from the top of Serifos

We asked Emilios to get us a reservation at a good restaurant for dinner, and he did not disappoint. We at at Kalis, a seafood restaurant right off of the pier with a great view of the cove. We ended up sharing dishes "family style": eel, calamari, fisherman's orzo, tuna steak. Absolutely fantastic.

Original post (5/11/22)

I spent hours journaling by hand during our yacht trip to Greece with the intention of transferring my entries to this blog upon return. And then I procrastinated. And then I misplaced my journal. One of these days I’ll get around to attempting to recreate our trip from memory, but for the time being, I’ll post our itinerary.

Day 1 (9/16-9/17) – Arriva --> Athens

Day 2 (9/17) – Athens --> Aegina (Saronic Islands)

Day 3 (9/18) – Aegina --> Kythnos (Western Cyclades)

Day 4 (9/19) – Kythnos --> Serifos (Western Cyclades)

Day 5 (9/20) – Serifos --> Milos (Southwestern Cyclades)

Day 6 (9/21) – Milos --> Spetses (Saronic Islands)

Day 7 (9/22) – Spetses --> Aegina (Saronic Islands)

Day 8 (9/23) – Moni --> Aegina (Saronic Islands)

Day 9 (9/24) – Athens

Day 10 (9/25) – Athens --> Departure