Thursday 19 December 2013

Athens- September 2013



Athens airport has improved a lot from 20 years ago when it was a dump; it is modern with many facilities as well as buses and trains that go to the centre of the city. Well, I suppose with the Olympic Games in 2004 helped to smarten things up.

We arrived at 9.30 pm as our plane was delayed and by the time we retrieved our luggage and made it to the transport options it was getting late. By the time we hit the city centre it was dark. We had the address of our hotel which I knew wasn’t far from the bus stop, the only problem was orientating the direction I needed to go as I didn’t have a great map. I finally went into a large hotel to get directions and was at least pointed in the right direction, though they didn’t have a free map to give me, which was unusual.

We walked in the given direction, received some reassurance from a person in a money exchange booth, but were still baffled as we couldn’t seem to find the street we needed. Two para-military were standing by their bus. I asked them directions, showed them the address I needed, which was very dark and therefore hard to read. ‘Have you got a torch?’ I asked. One produced it with a smile waved it around then proceeded to scrutinize the address after a short discussion amongst themselves, they gave us very precise directions and we found our hotel without hitch after that.

We were thankful to get to our room, drop our luggage and find something to eat, across the road from out hotel there was a small restaurant, we shared a pizza, boring, yes, but it was light and just enough. We then went back to our room and planned the next day.

We were up early, ready to make our way to the Acropolis, it’s easy to find as it can be seen from anywhere and you just walk in its general direction and eventually you will find signs pointing the way. We arrived at a reasonable time in the morning and it wasn’t so crowded. It is wonderful walking around
The Acropolis
such famous site. The rock of the Acropolis has been a sacred site for centuries and after 11th century B.C. it became home of the cult of Athena, patron goddess of the city. It was in the 5th century B.C. when Athens was at the height of her power that the most famous buildings we recognize today were built, the Parthenon, Propylea and a little later the temple of Athena Nike and the Erechtheion. We walked around a number of times finding different points of interest each time. Then just as we were leaving we saw the cruise ship tour groups arrive, ready to ‘take over’ the site, like a plague of mice.

We walked around the outside and popped into the tiny Church of Metamorphosis then wandered down through the Agora which is quite expansive. It was the centre of political and public life. It has a large open area which is surrounded by buildings which were used for commerce, political, cultural and the military life. Walking around this area it’s not hard to imagine the life in ancient Greece, people going about their everyday business, shopping, chatting and sitting around watching the passing parade. Maybe they even dropped into Hadrian’s library on their way home.
The Agora

By the time we had finished walking around we were hot, tired and hungry. We then made our way to a line of restaurants next to the Agora. It was not hard to find a place to eat and we had an enjoyable lunch and relaxed a little.

Then back on our feet through the Flea Market, with its very trashy products. After all our walking we went back to our hotel for a little siesta. Then we decide to go to the Plaka for dinner. Not surprising this has also changed heaps in 20 years. It used to be a lot more low key. Still with plenty of restaurants and jewellery shops, but I think they had better jewellery then. It’s much more commercial now. We met an English couple with whom we had a good conversation and ended up eating at the restaurant they were sitting at. We had a lovely meal. I think most places in this area all serve much the same fare, but some are more pricey and pushy then others.

The following day we went to the Museum of the University of Athens, which is situated in the building that functioned as the first university of the Independent Greek State from 1837-41. The collections at the museum include books (works by the University’s Professors), manuscripts, documents, photographs etc. The collections are divided into the University’s first schools (Medicine, Law, Philosophy and Theology). The collections are very interesting and worth a visit, a bonus is that you get a magnificent view of Athens from the balcony.

We then decided to go to the Gallery of Modern Greek Art. It is always interesting to visit galleries and see different artistic interpretations from other countries. First we had to hunt the Gallery as the original building was being renovated; the whole exercise was a bit of an expedition. We finally located it and spent some time there but our overall feeling was that it was a bit disappointing, there was no painting or artist we felt really stood out. As we had spent most of the time finding the gallery along the less touristy area, passed closed shops, run- down buildings and a whole lot of second hand shops selling a lot of junk really, it threw into view how the economic problems of Greece has affected so many. We had dinner at the Plaka again that night, though touristy, it’s a nice area and close to where we are staying and have many restaurants to choose from.

We planned to go to Lykavittόs Hill which rises 277metres above the city. We were lazy and took the funicular; it can about 45 minutes to climb it on foot. We had a great view. The downside was that
Athens from Lykavitoos Hill
funicular timetable was regular but sparse. The café was overpriced and the service excruciatingly slow.

However as we were coming back down from the funicular we came across a Friday market which we enjoyed looking at the various produce. Then as we made our way down we found this little café and had a very nice lunch at a reasonable price.

As we were making our way back we were near the Byzantium Museum is located in a beautiful Florentine style villa. It has an extensive collection which is divided into two sections, Section 1: From the Ancient World to Byzantium, which traces the rise of Christianity and Section 2: The Byzantium World runs from the 6th century to the fall of Constantinople in 1453. It is all very informative and gives a good historical overview with an interesting array of exhibits. It was well worth a visit.


Monastery of Dafni
We then decided to escape Athens proper for the next day and took a bus to the Monastery of Dafnί which is about 10km from Athens, we read about it in our little guide book and it looked interesting. The monastery was built in the 11th century on the site of an ancient sanctuary dedicated to Apollo. The description of it sounded very interesting. We noted that it was being restored and needed to possibly phone for opening details, this advice would’ve been wise to follow as it was totally surrounded by a high wire fenced and of course, closed. I was determined to take at least a couple of photos through the wire after making the effort. We went back to the bus stop which seemed in the middle of nowhere to continue on to Ancient Eleusis.

We were helped to get the correct bus and one of the passengers was determined to make sure we found the ancient ruins and instructed us to follow him. The ancient site was fascinating to walk around. For 1,400 years Eleusis was the centre of a religious cult that culminated in an annual Eleusinian Mysteries festival. Eleusis was closed by the Romans in AD 369.

Ruins of Ancient Eleusis


Just opposite the site was a delightful restaurant where we had lunch and then made our way back to the bus stop to return to Athens proper.

The following day we were leaving for Napoli on the Peloponnese.


Wednesday 18 December 2013

Dubrovnik- September 2013

It didn’t take us long to get to the bus station, we then bought our tickets and we were off by 9.15 am. It was a 5 hour bus trip to Dubrovnik, on the way the road passes through Bosnia for about 7kms. Obviously the road was built when the area was united as Yugoslavia and wasn’t an issue, but now as we go through a separate country we have a customs/immigration stop.

View of Dubrovnik
The bus station we arrived at is 3kms from Dubrovnik old town. We soon discovered we could get a bus but needed to buy our tickets at a kiosk just near the required bus stop. As there were a number of us who had come from the bus station gong in the same direction it made it easier to find out the required procedure.

All good and we arrived just outside the city walls. It was quite frantic getting into the town with the pathway divided for entrance and exit. Once inside the wall finding the street our guest house was in was quite easy, we walked up to the entrance and almost from out of nowhere our landlady appeared. She showed us to our room and some information and then disappeared.

We walked around the town orientating ourselves to various places of interest as well as just generally exploring. It is much more touristy than Split, it has tour buses lined up outside the town and hordes of cruise ship groups swarming over the place like a plague of mice. It says a lot when the tacky souvenir shops display notices saying that their establishment is recommended by this or that cruise ship company. Avoid, avoid, I say.

The first night there we went to a delightful recital in Domino Church performed by the Dubrovnik Chamber Trio, which consists of well- established musicians.

The next day we took the funicular to the hill behind the town as it provides stunning views. To get to the start of the funicular requires a pretty hefty climb in the first place. We eventually made it; then had to wait awhile for it to turn up. It was definitely worth taking the trip up there and as we were early there weren’t many people at the top. The views are stunning, and looking on the town surrounded by its walls made it look like a model. Of course there was a café here so we had a coffee, then wandered around some more.There was a memorial cross on the mountain and as we walked around the top a number of goats were wandering around grazing on the rather sparse pickings.

In the centre of Dubrovnik we found rather nice café up one of the side streets, which appeared to be run by a mother and her daughters. It offered small lunches and coffee at reasonable prices and had good service.

We then visited the Franciscan Monastery, which has had an interesting history; and has been a dispensary for hundreds of years and is still dispensing medicine. It had been shelled during the Balkans War in the 90s. Actually you can still see the shell holes in the building as well as places around the town also information about damage done in various areas. Dubrovnik didn’t need to be shelled from a strategic point of view, but was shelled just to destroy it. The whole Balkans War at that time was extremely vicious with neighbor against neighbor, committing atrocities. No group was completely squeaky clean, but I think the Serbs were the dominant perpetrators. Many books have been written about this era all of which sound very depressing. Man’s inhumanity to man. Do we ever learn?

Franciscan Monastery

The weather here was perfect and the water a beautiful blue, so we decided to have a little boat tour, an hour ‘spin’ around the coast and islands. It was very relaxing sailing around the islands, some were inhabited and others not. Many European tourists come to this area for their summer ‘beach’ holiday, except the beaches are non-existent. Sunbathing is done on the rocks and there are ladders like in swimming pools for people to access the sea for a swim.

After we returned we ventured to the Dominican Monastery and decided to find the Synagogue, which was down a side street near our accommodation. It was upstairs in one of the narrow building; during the recent war in 1991 the synagogue was directly hit twice and was restored in1997. In 2003 the Jewish Museum, the first in Croatia was opened in the same building. There are three parts to the museum: (1) the history of the Dubrovnik Jewish Community, (2) displays of religious objects dating from 13th -17th century, (3) is dedicated to the memory of victims Shoah. Though quite small it was still an interesting and sobering.

Our last full day here we visited a couple more churches, St Ignatius, a Jesuit Church and full on Baroque and the Serbian Orthodox Church. We then went to organize transport to the airport. It was all very odd, in that we were asked when we wanted to leave, fair enough, but as we were booking a minibus with others we thought there would be set times and days they would be operating. Anyway she made a phone call, arranged our transport, we paid, told where to go and when to be picked up. This was a legitimate tour company.

The steep side streets

Anyway the next day we duly arrived at our pick up point, a young woman turned up waiting and checked with us re: booking the bus. Then an unmarked minivan turned up, she got in the front. We were on our way to the airport. Our extra passenger was dropped off on the way near her home. We were dropped off at the airport where non- commercial vehicles park. All good!

We would now be on our way to Athens.

Thursday 12 December 2013

Split-Croatia Sept 2013


We arrived in Split at around 2.00 p.m. and went in search of our accommodation .It wasn’t that far from the bus station, the trick however was to find it. I managed to work out the direction and knew it had to be off the main road, but the name of the street where it should be didn’t match up. I managed to find someone to give me directions. We weren’t far away just needed to go under the arch just a little way down the road and we would be there.

Main Square in the centre of the Palace
That was negotiated easily and as we walked up the narrow road, again a man came hurrying down to help us, and again it was the woman who did all the work of running the establishment. Dalmatian House is in a great location not far from the old town. Our hostess was very helpful and even did our laundry for us when I enquired where I could get it done. We gave here our laundry, she gave us a map, pointed out some good places to eat and we were off to explore.

Split is an interesting town which has been built within the ruins of Diocletian’s Palace. Shops, houses are crammed into a spider-web of narrow lanes. It is wonderful to wander through the lanes turning this way and that to see where you end up.

One of the laneways

In the centre of the palace the Emperor’s Mausoleum was transformed into the Catholic Cathedral in the 7th century. Diocletian was Emperor (284-316); he was one of the greatest Roman emperors. It took him 10 years to build the palace in Split. Opposite the Cathedral is the Temple of Jupiter which has been turned into a Baptistery.

We also went into what is now called the basement halls which were originally the ground floor. The original palace was right at the water’s edge so I imagine the ancient ships sailing up to its outer walls and doors.

From there we decided to check out the Maritime Museum. There were some interesting exhibits, though I skipped through a lot of the military stuff, however, one exhibit which caught my attention was who developed the concept of the torpedo and its history. Another exhibit was a fish holding jar, which after fish have been caught, but still alive are place in a large jar with holes in the side which is subsequently placed in the sea, fresh fish, that can’t escape.

It did bucket down with rain for a short period of time which we were lucky to miss as we were in a shop at the time. After lunch we walked along the shore and up the hill to Marjan Park. We popped into a little Franciscan Church which we passed on our way.


View from Marjan Park

We climbed a number of steps there was a little Jewish cemetery located at the top. From the top there was also a wonderful view of the town and coastline.

We ate dinner at a restaurant recommended by our hostess, Fife which was by the waterfront. It was certainly worth going to, the food was good and very reasonable, as obviously very popular with locals and tourists alike.

On our last day we wanted to have a ‘boating’ experience but not have a whole day tour, we took a ferry to Brač an island more noted for resort style holidays than history. It was very pleasant journey across. The main town Supetar is very small; exploring any of the interesting places didn’t take that long. We had a rather nice lunch overlooking the sea, wandered around the coast then made our way back in time to catch the next ferry back to Split.

The next day we left for Dubrovnik and as we handed back our keys to our hostess she gave me a little present as a souvenir. It was a very nice touch.

Plitvice Lakes- Croatia Sept. 2013

The bus journey to the Plitvice Lakes was longer than I imagined, we arrived after lunch. When the bus arrived at its last stop we alighted looking around checking our paper for the address of our accommodation. The bus driver gestured to us to look at the address and pointed to us to get back on the bus and then stopped outside the place we were staying, which was at the previous stop.

We were greeted by a man running down the path eager to take our bags to our accommodation. The House Samardzic was very picturesque and the woman who ran very friendly and helpful. She showed us to our room which was basic and clean with all the usual amenities including free Wi-Fi.

We left our bags in our room ready to go to the lakes; our hostess said her son would drive us up there as he was going out anyway. Offered to cook us dinner there that night (obviously to be paid for) to which we heartily agreed as it would save us looking for a place,

One of many waterfalls
So we were off to the Plitvice Lakes National Park, the park has numerous lakes and waterfalls. The many lakes are formed from the sediment formed from the calcium carbonate from the water. It builds barriers along with algae which causes various separate lakes to form. We managed to complete one walk that day marveling and the beautiful scenery and waterfalls. The water so clear that even in the deeper sections fish could be seen swimming on the bottom.


Pristine and clear water of the lakes
We walked back to our accommodation along the main road, not the safest way to go as there was no actual ‘footpath’ space on either side, which made it rather scary when cars and buses whizzed by.

We had a delicious dinner our meal was three course with cold meats and olives to start and delicious fish main and cake to finish with. We were plied with rakia which was quite potent.

The next day we were up early to have breakfast, ready to face a whole day at the lakes. We did a different walk which took us longer, everywhere one looked was spectacular, and even though there were a lot of people there it didn’t spoil the experience. Many of the paths are on boardwalks as the ground in places is quite marshy. We went on a boat ride across one of the lakes and walked along the banks. By the time we finished walking all day we decided to make our way back to our room. Before leaving we pre-bought our ticket for the bus the next morning.

View of the Lakes

We were lazy again and had our dinner at the guest house, a meat meal this time, though I thought the fish meal was better, but it still was a homely nourishing meal.

The next day we were up early for breakfast as we were catching our bus at 9.30, but were lucky as the bus stop on the main road was just opposite the pathway from the guest house.

We were thankful to see the bus as it arrived a bit late. We were now on our way to Split. One bizarre thing that on the way there is part of the road about 7 km which goes through Bosnia, so we had to have a customs check. This road was probably constructed when there was a Yugoslavia and not separate countries so the route of the road wouldn’t have been an issue.


Zagreb- September 2013


We caught the train from Ljubljana to Zagreb, early the journey was quite slow and included a border station where immigration officials from both countries checked our passports.


When we arrived mid- morning and it was heartening to see our hotel virtually opposite the railway station as we had no map it certainly made it so much easier. We were soon booked in then grabbed ourselves a free map and went to explore the city.

Zagreb the capital of Croatia has a population of nearly one million contains almost a quarter of its people.

There are many interesting places and the vibrant street life makes it an enjoyable city to visit. We started our orientation by walking away from the station past many beautiful buildings arriving at the square in front of the cathedral which still dominates the skyline with its neo-Gothic style and is surrounded by well- preserved Renaissance walls. The Cathedral was first constructed in 1093 but was destroyed by the Tartars in the 13th century. The Ottomans invaded in the 15th century and constructed the walls around it. In 1880 it was badly damaged by an earthquake and the facade was reconstructed in 1906.

Not far from the Cathedral is a lively food market. Markets are always interesting to walk around. We admired the large juicy tomatoes which are full of flavour. Finding a place to eat was not difficult as there are restaurants and cafes everywhere, it’s more of a matter as to what one wants to eat. We found a small café which sold absolutely delicious simple hamburgers.

Zagreb is divided into an Upper and Lower Town. The Lower Town is newer and the streets were planned on gridlines and must be the same width and all buildings the same height and type, included in this plan were many parks and squares with an abundance of neo-classical buildings which makes walking around the town a delight.

Our second day here we went to the Modern Art Gallery. It was extremely interesting and broad selection of art from various eras across Europe as well as a good selection from Croatian artists. We also visited the Technical Museum another interesting place. They had a ‘Tesla Laboratory’ set up and had demonstrations relating to his experiments with electricity. Nikolai Tesla was instrumental in the development and introduction of alternating current, x-rays, remote control devices and radio waves Although the commentary was only in Croatian we were able to understand the gist of what was being demonstrated, it is handy if you have some science background though. The demonstrator spoke some English as we spoke to him afterwards.

The Upper Town is entered via the Stone Gate, the only town gate that has remained intact and was originally built in the Middle Ages. Under the arch of the gateway is a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It holds the painting of the Virgin that was miraculously saved from a devastating fire in 1731. The chapel is still a place of pilgrimage. Prayer services take place regularly and many people make private devotions. The chapel is not enclosed and you wander through the gate and can find yourself in the midst of devout pilgrims. Sensitivity is a must.

St. Mark's Church
In the heart of the Upper Town is St. Mark’s Church which is a 13th century Romanesque Church; however it was substantially rebuilt in the 19th century. The roof tiles, which are reminiscent of Stephansdom in Vienna, are decorated with the coat of arms of the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slovenia.

We walked in and out the narrow streets and lanes of the Upper Town passed a Museum of Broken Relationships (bizarre); there were a number of other small museums in this part of the city.

While we were here in one of the large squares a Vegan Festival was being set up. On our last day in the city, which was a Saturday the festival was in full swing. So we wandered around the various stalls. We tried the ice-cream on one stall. They had some very interesting flavours which in included lemon and mint, very refreshing and apricot and rosemary the combination really worked. There were children’s performances and overall it was very enjoyable.

The Vegan Festival

We walked around some of the little lanes near the market as we were having a coffee a group of women in national costume appeared and sang some traditional songs. Then there was a parade of people dressed in animal costumes which I think was related to the Vegan Festival. The weather was great and it was just lovely to wander around taking in the atmosphere.

Part of the street parade
While having something to eat another street parade took place of men in historical military uniforms both on foot and on horses. One guy with his rather bushy moustache on his horse looked as though he had just returned from the Battle of Balaclava. It seems that these types of displays are held most weekends which are great for both tourists and locals alike.  

One of last locations to visit was the Botanical Gardens which run parallel to the railway tracks, according to the blurb there is a collection of 10,000 plant species, ranging from the exotic to indigenous Croatian plants. However the gardens overall were very disappointing, the poor layout and the lack of labeling didn’t help either.

Oneof the 'Guardians' of the City
There are many interesting places to visit in Zagreb and our stay was extremely enjoyable. Outdoor stalls in parks and entertainment, cafes, markets and just the buzz of the city make it a great place to visit. As you walk around the city look up, if you look carefully you will notice unusual characters on façades, balconies and posts, towers, next to windows and above doors. Beasts, demons, dragons, owls, angels and spirits are not just mere decoration but are ‘guardians’ of the city. The tourist office has two great books called ‘Zagreb’ and ‘Step by Step Zagreb,’ just pop in and ask for them. The information contained in them will keep you exploring every nook and cranny of the city.


The next day we were off to the Plitvice Lakes. We had bought our bus ticket and as the tram that went to the bus station passed our hotel it made it very easy to get ourselves and our luggage there.

We caught the train from Ljubljana to Zagreb, early the journey was quite slow and included a border station where immigration officials from both countries checked our passports. When we arrived mid- morning and it was heartening to see our hotel virtually opposite the railway station as we had no map it certainly made it so much easier. We were soon booked in then grabbed ourselves a free map and went to explore the city. Zagreb the capital of Croatia has a population of nearly one million contains almost a quarter of its people. There are many interesting places and the vibrant street life makes it an enjoyable city to visit. We started our orientation by walking away from the station past many beautiful buildings arriving at the square in front of the cathedral which still dominates the skyline with its neo-Gothic style and is surrounded by well- preserved Renaissance walls. The Cathedral was first constructed in 1093 but was destroyed by the Tartars in the 13th century. The Ottomans invaded in the 15th century and constructed the walls around it. In 1880 it was badly damaged by an earthquake and the facade was reconstructed in 1906. Not far from the Cathedral is a lively food market. Markets are always interesting to walk around. We admired the large juicy tomatoes which are full of flavour. Finding a place to eat was not difficult as there are restaurants and cafes everywhere, it’s more of a matter as to what one wants to eat. We found a small café which sold absolutely delicious simple hamburgers. Zagreb is divided into an Upper and Lower Town. The Lower Town is newer and the streets were planned on gridlines and must be the same width and all buildings the same height and type, included in this plan were many parks and squares with an abundance of neo-classical buildings which makes walking around the town a delight. Our second day here we went to the Modern Art Gallery. It was extremely interesting and broad selection of art from various eras across Europe as well as a good selection from Croatian artists. We also visited the Technical Museum another interesting place. They had a ‘Tesla Laboratory’ set up and had demonstrations relating to his experiments with electricity. Nikolai Tesla was instrumental in the development and introduction of alternating current, x-rays, remote control devices and radio waves Although the commentary was only in Croatian we were able to understand the gist of what was being demonstrated, it is handy if you have some science background though. The demonstrator spoke some English as we spoke to him afterwards. The Upper Town is entered via the Stone Gate, the only town gate that has remained intact and was originally built in the Middle Ages. Under the arch of the gateway is a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It holds the painting of the Virgin that was miraculously saved from a devastating fire in 1731. The chapel is still a place of pilgrimage. Prayer services take place regularly and many people make private devotions. The chapel is not enclosed and you wander through the gate and can find yourself in the midst of devout pilgrims. Sensitivity is a must. In the heart of the Upper Town is St. Mark’s Church which is a 13th century Romanesque Church; however it was substantially rebuilt in the 19th century. The roof tiles, which are reminiscent of Stephansdom in Vienna, are decorated with the coat of arms of the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slovenia. We walked in and out the narrow streets and lanes of the Upper Town passed a Museum of Broken Relationships (bizarre); there were a number of other small museums in this part of the city. While we were here in one of the large squares a Vegan Festival was being set up. On our last day in the city, which was a Saturday the festival was in full swing. So we wandered around the various stalls. We tried the ice-cream on one stall. They had some very interesting flavours which in included lemon and mint, very refreshing and apricot and rosemary the combination really worked. There were children’s performances and overall it was very enjoyable. We walked around some of the little lanes near the market as we were having a coffee a group of women in national costume appeared and sang some traditional songs. Then there was a parade of people dressed in animal costumes which I think was related to the Vegan Festival. The weather was great and it was just lovely to wander around taking in the atmosphere. While having something to eat another street parade took place of men in historical military uniforms both on foot and on horses. One guy with his rather bushy moustache on his horse looked as though he had just returned from the Battle of Balaclava. It seems that these types of displays are held most weekends which are great for both tourists and locals alike. One of last locations to visit was the Botanical Gardens which run parallel to the railway tracks, according to the blurb there is a collection of 10,000 plant species, ranging from the exotic to indigenous Croatian plants. However the gardens overall were very disappointing, the poor layout and the lack of labeling didn’t help either. There are many interesting places to visit in Zagreb and our stay was extremely enjoyable. Outdoor stalls in parks and entertainment, cafes, markets and just the buzz of the city make it a great place to visit. As you walk around the city look up, if you look carefully you will notice unusual characters on façades, balconies and posts, towers, next to windows and above doors. Beasts, demons, dragons, owls, angels and spirits are not just mere decoration but are ‘guardians’ of the city. The tourist office has two great books called ‘Zagreb’ and ‘Step by Step Zagreb,’ just pop in and ask for them. The information contained in them will keep you exploring every nook and cranny of the city. The next day we were off to the Plitvice Lakes. We had bought our bus ticket and as the tram that went to the bus station passed our hotel it made it very easy to get ourselves and our luggage there.